Jennifer Aniston says she gets 'bullied' over vaccination stance: 'I don’t understand the disconnect'

Jennifer Aniston is the latest cover star of The Hollywood Reporter, and within the accompanying interview, she opened up about living and working in the ever-changing Hollywood fishbowl.

"It’s a fine line to walk, maintaining some sort of mystery, but also being able to participate in current society—going out to dinner or being on Instagram," the Friends icon said. "And that’s the other thing about the pandemic: I’m prone to agoraphobia, and so I used to be like, 'Let’s go to dinner,' and now I’m like, 'No, let’s not. Come over, come over, come over.' I think I’ve been to five restaurants [since the pandemic began], and the same ones because they required vaccinations. You know, someone literally called me a 'liberal Vax-hole' the other day. I don’t understand the disconnect right now, being bullied for wanting people not to be sick? I mean, that’s what we’re talking about."

Aniston, 52, also reflected on the tabloid coverage she endured in the late 1990s and early aughts.

"I think people are still doing it today," the Emmy-winning actress posited. "What the tabloids and the media did to people’s personal lives back then, regular people are doing now. Although I haven’t seen a tabloid in so long. Am I still having twins? Am I going to be the miracle mother at 52? (Laughs.) Now you’ve got social media. It’s almost like the media handed over the sword to any Joe Schmo sitting behind a computer screen to be a troll or whatever they call them and bully people in comment sections. So it’s just sort of changed hands in a way. And I don’t know why there’s such a cruel streak in society. I often wonder what they get off on."

Aniston previously spoke with InStyle for its September "Fashion Issue" about her stance on the COVID-19 vaccine and how it has impacted her social circle:

"There's still a large group of people who are anti-vaxxers or just don't listen to the facts. It's a real shame. I've just lost a few people in my weekly routine who have refused or did not disclose [whether or not they had been vaccinated], and it was unfortunate. I feel it's your moral and professional obligation to inform, since we're not all podded up and being tested every single day. It's tricky because everyone is entitled to their own opinion—but a lot of opinions don't feel based in anything except fear or propaganda."

 View more from Aniston's THR shoot below.