“Our culture thinks that at 59 years old, I am past my prime, and that women my age start to become invisible in Hollywood, in the workplace, on social media,” Berry said at the Dealbook Summit Wednesday.

Halle Berry speaks onstage during The New York Times DealBook Summit 2025 at Jazz at Lincoln Center on December 3, 2025 in New York City. Photo by David Dee Delgado/Getty Images for The New York Times

In an emotional and raw speech at The New York Times Dealbook Summit Wednesday, Halle Berry, the actress, filmmaker and founder of the menopause care company Respin, lamented how women are viewed in Hollywood and corporate America, criticized California governor Gavin Newsom for vetoing a menopause bill she backed, and called for women to take back control of their health and their treatment.

“At this stage in my life, I have zero fucks left to give,” Berry told the crowd of power players in New York.

In fact, her comments about Newsom drew some gasps from the audience, after explaining her lobbying in Washington and across the country for menopause bills that support research and education about women’s health.

“Back in my great state of California, my very own governor, Gavin Newsom, has vetoed our menopause bill, not one, but two years in a row,” Berry said. “But that’s okay, because he’s not going to be governor forever, and the way he has overlooked women, half the population, by devaluing us, he probably should not be our next president either. Just saying.”

Newsom, it’s worth noting, is scheduled to appear at the Dealbook Summit later this afternoon.

Berry’s speech layered personal anecdotes from her childhood, and observations from her career and work as a philanthropist and activist. “As a founder, I’m building for myself what I wish I had 10 years ago with the knowing that it’s going to help generations and generations to come,” Berry said.

“In 2025 there is a lot to still be talked about and discovered and uncovered, especially if you are a woman who is navigating midlife and thoughtfully considering your longevity, because in 2025 I, Halle Berry, and women of my age are simply devalued in this country,” Berry said. “Our culture thinks that at 59 years old, I am past my prime, and that women my age start to become invisible in Hollywood, in the workplace, on social media. Women are pressured to stay forever 35. We’re complimented if we seem to be aging backwards or defying gravity, as if that’s even possible, and if we somehow manage to look younger than our years, it’s suggested that’s the gold standard that our worth should be measured by.”

“We’re encouraged to contort our bodies and our faces in truly extreme ways to chase this elusive fountain of youth,” she continued. “And sadly, I have to admit, I too, feel this pressure every single day. I feel that pressure to change myself in order to stay seen relevant and desirable.”

And she recalled being bullied and beat up when she was a child in Cleveland, Ohio, with kids telling her they were going to beat her up when she got off the bus, and proceeded to do just that. It was, in Berry’s telling, a defining moment in her life.

“As they walked off laughing, I was left to pick myself up shirtless out of the gutter. And I did that, but I was humiliated, because I had allowed myself to be treated this way. I made the choice to accept it,” Berry said. “I didn’t tell anybody. When they told me they were going to beat the shit out of me, I just said, okay, I deserve it. I guess I’m just going to take it. I have no choice.”

“But as I was walking home, I said, no. I’m never going to allow this to happen to me again,” she continued. “I’m never not going to stand up for myself. I’ll never allow myself to be a victim like that, and since I was in the sixth grade, I have never allowed myself to be misused or abused or mistreated in any way.”