Jessica Chastain Reflects on Breaking Family’s Generational Cycle by Going to College: ‘Determined to Escape’ 

Jessica Chastain is getting candid about breaking generational cycles.

In a powerful speech at the 38th Annual American Cinematheque Awards on Friday, Dec. 6, the Mother’s Instinct star, 47, shared her personal experience with trying to break her family’s cycle in order to find success and become something more than what society expected.

Chastain noted that her great-grandmother, grandmother, aunt and mother all had children before the age of 17, and they “had to drop out of school and take on low-paying jobs to support their families.” However, the actress said she was “determined” to set a different future for herself.

“Theater became my lifeline,” she shared. “It was a way to feel seen, to use my voice and to break free from the expectations that had bound my family for generations. And I became determined to escape the cycle.”

“I was the first in my family to not get pregnant as a teenager, the first to finish high school and the first to attend college,” she explained. “And attending the Juilliard School didn’t just change my life. It showed my family that a different path was possible.”

Chastain said that since then, she has “worked to dismantle the restrictive roles society imposes on women” through her career and break the “archetypes” that women are valued solely for their “sexual desirability” or their “function as mothers.” She noted that she did just that by landing two top box-office films early on in her career: Mama and Zero Dark Thirty.

“It’s an honor to portray women who are capable, who are intelligent and independent,” the Space Within actress said. “I want kids to see. I want little girls and I want boys to see that her true value isn’t in her beauty or her role as someone’s partner, but in her intellect, her resilience and her strength.” 

“Stories matter because they shape culture. Stories inspire change and stories empower future generations,” she added. 

Over the years, Chastain has paid tribute to her grandmother and mother on social media. She wished her mom a “Happy Mother’s Day” on Instagram in 2020, noting that she was “grateful” to her mom and grandmother for giving “so much for their children.”

In October, Chastain revealed that her grandmother had been diagnosed with breast cancer and encouraged people to get a mammogram.

“This week, I flew to meet with her amazing doctors and surgeons who are providing her the best possible care,” the actress wrote on Instagram at the time. “I’m beyond grateful to the incredible hospital staff.”

She added, “She’s a total badass, and I know she’ll get through this. 💪🏼.”