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​Jennifer Coolidge Didn't Mind Being Called 'MILF' As People Debate Whether Term Is Offensive

​Jennifer Coolidge Didn't Mind Being Called 'MILF' As People Debate Whether Term Is Offensive

The actor said she preferred the term to 'cougar', which she believes sounds more 'predatory'

Jess Hardiman

Jess Hardiman

American Pie actor Jennifer Coolidge has said she had no issue being referred to as a 'MILF'.

The term - which stands for 'Mum I'd Like To F***' - was once bandied around pretty freely, but in recent years people have begun to wonder how suitable it really is, with some arguing it carries fairly 'negative' connotations.

Coolidge, 59, famously portrayed Stifler's mum in the American Pie franchise. The character became practically synonymous with the 'MILF' archetype after Coolidge's big break came with the first film in 1999.

According to Dictionary.com, the term itself traces back to the early 1990s, but it was that original American Pie flick that popularised it.

But Coolidge said she prefers the word to other alternatives used for older women.

Universal Pictures

Speaking to the Guardian back in 2013, she explained: "I like 'MILF' better than 'cougar'.

"I feel like 'cougar' just sounds more predatory, it sounds more like someone really seeking out young men and I just like it more when it's their idea. Because with 'MILF' it was really the kid's idea, you know?"

She said that even then, 14 years on from the film's release, young men would come up to her to ask to have their photo taken with her, trembling beside her when she obliges.

"I don't know if they think I'm going to rip their clothes off or something," she said.

"I did date younger men after that movie. I really dated younger men for the next 10, 15 years."

PA

The appropriateness of the term 'MILF' is still hotly debated. Last year, people on Reddit discussed the acronym after one user asked whether or not the stereotype was offensive.

While some said they didn't believe there was anything wrong with the term, some disagreed.

One person replied in the thread: "Of course it is. It's telling someone 'I'd still f*** you even though you've ravaged and ruined your body with having children and society considers you old and unsexual. That's not a compliment.

"Telling someone you'd still have sex with them despite a 'negative' is never a compliment."

Another wrote: "It's just another variation on the scripts used to objectify women. Feeling desire for or interest in a particular woman is one thing. Spinning it into a MILF [...] is a strategy for stripping your humanity and the humanity of a woman away from your desire."

Others defended the term. One wrote: "There's nothing wrong with being attracted to a certain archetype. Most of us are, to some degree or another.

"Psychology and sexuality are complicated, and I don't think anyone has the right to shame anyone for their preferred flavors (assuming it's nothing legally or ethically questionable)."

Featured Image Credit: Universal Pictures

Topics: Entertainment, Celebrity