The Stunning Transformation Of Megan Fox

One word in particular comes to mind when we think of Megan Fox: fierce. She is someone who seems to never be afraid to say what she thinks, and doesn't apologize for being herself.

She's a talented actress who has taken on a variety of different roles and challenges. She's smart and has a strong sense of faith. Basically, she's a strong woman who isn't afraid to do the unexpected. So let's take a closer look at the stunning transformation of this bonafide starlet throughout the years.

Fox grew up in Tennessee, raised by her mom. She knew from her toddler years that she was meant to be in the acting world. As she described to The New York Times, "I wanted to be an actress from the time I was 2. My mom said it was the only thing I ever said I wanted to do. When I was 4 or 5, I watched The Wizard of Oz, and for a year, I asked her to call me Dorothy. When my mom explained to me that Dorothy was not real, that an actress plays her, I decided I wanted to be an actress."

Fox described in the same interview that her childhood was a bit lonely. Her mother and father divorced when she was very young. As she told GQ, her sister was 13 years older, so Fox found different ways to spend her time, remembering, "I would put on shows in our living room. It wasn't even a need to perform. I just always wanted everyone's attention to be focused on me."

Even though Fox was confident in what she wanted to do when she was young, she still experienced tough times when it came to school. As the actress described to Elle, she was bullied a lot in middle school, and would eat lunch in the bathroom to avoid her fellow students.

Looking back, Fox better understands why the bullying happened. She shared during the interview, "I think, for me, what was intimidating was that I've always gotten along better with boys...That rubbed some people the wrong way." Despite the bullying, it's nice to see that she stuck with her passion and didn't give up. Fox has come a long way since those tough days in school, and she gets huge props for that.

Fox got her childhood wish in her teen years. At 14 years old, Fox did some modeling work, and auditioned for acting roles at the same time. As she described to The New York Times, she landed her first part in the Mary Kate and Ashley Olsen movie, Holiday in the Sun. Then a few years later, in 2004, the 17-year-old earned a role in the film Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen.

She spoke about this experience during the interview, saying, "I played the b*tch, of course...I was always cast as the b*tch. The light-haired girl is the sweet leading lady, and the dark girl is the sexy b*tch...I didn't know how to act when I did that movie. I just mimicked all the b*tches I'd seen other people play on TV." And with this success, Fox moved to New York around this time, but it wasn't always easy. As she told GQ, "I was really isolated. I never went out. I had no friends. I was just on my own in the apartment the whole time...I ran out of food. I ran out of water. I ran out of everything."

Fox may have wanted to be an actress since she could walk and discussed success at a young age, but she learned quickly that fame was the last thing she wanted. As she told GQ, "I grew up craving the spotlight and once it happened I immediately recoiled. ... Up until the very moment it happened I was really outgoing. Now I'm really introverted. I thought that I would love it, that this was the kind of life I wanted, that everyone wanted. And it's not all that it seems."

When Fox looked back on this time, she had a better understanding of why she felt that way. She continued on to say, "I felt like, once I achieved that success then all of my internal issues would be solved and I would be this really confident person. And I'm not. It's not just physical insecurity...It's also a feeling of not being acceptable, and wanting to be. Of course I think that has something to do with my parents' divorce and not seeing my dad and always feeling rejected. You don't ever really get past that."

While filming the TV show, Hope & Faith, in 2004, Fox met actor Brian Austin Green, who played himself on an episode of the series. She told Elle about their first meeting: "I was like, Oh my God, I have to be with you." The only hurdle was that Green was 30 years old, while Fox was just 18. She "had to convince him" that their age gap wasn't a big deal.

Mission accomplished. Green and Fox started dating shortly after, and got married in 2010. Fox filed for divorce in August 2015, but the two reconciled less than a year later, revealing they were having their third child. Green alluded to the short-lived split on his podcast in September 2017, saying, "Marriage is hard. ...We've had and have a great relationship and we're just taking it day by day." Despite the drama, they have mostly stayed out of the spotlight. As Fox told Elle, "I do not want to comment on my relationship, period."

In 2007, a 21-year-old Fox booked Michael Bay's newest film, Transformers. It was a huge role and a smash hit, but the project wasn't smooth sailing. It was reported that Fox said some harsh words about the director. She opened up about it with The New York Times, saying, "I got myself in this whole mess. ...I know that the things they said about me in the crew letter were not true. ...I was waiting for someone to defend me, to say, 'That's not accurate,' but nobody did."

Fox told the LA Times that when the third Transformers' film was being released, she got in touch with him to apologize, saying, "I was, like, 'Hey, the movie is about to come out and it's gonna be huge. Congratulations. I just want you to understand that anything I've ever said negative about you in the press... I should have kept that between you and I.'" Both Fox and Bay showed there were no hard feelings, as the two worked together some years later.

By this point in her career, Fox's had been typecast: a shallow, hot chick. She saw this happening, but was also aware of the difficulty in changing people's perceptions. She spoke on this topic with the LA Times, saying, "I think people, in general, are plebeians that are brainwashed by the type of media that they expose themselves to. ... People anticipate a shallowness [from me]. They anticipate a self-centeredness and a lack of self-awareness."

She continued, "It doesn't...matter what I say, or how eloquent a speaker I may be, or how positive my intentions may be. I'm going to be made into what people desire me to be. At this moment, they might desire to exalt me onto a pedestal. But the next? You're a human sacrifice. The control is not in my hands." Fox has continued to take the comments in stride and known who she really is.

What is the one role that Fox loves more than anything? Being a mom. Fox had her first child, Noah, at 26 years old in 2012. And then, just a year later, she was pregnant with baby number two. She and Green then had their third child in 2016. As Fox shared with Extra, she is a big fan of being pregnant.

She said, "I feel great. I love being pregnant, which is — a lot of women don't feel that way, it is really uncomfortable ... by the way. It is painful at parts. I feel the overall process is an amazing one. I feel so productive creating a human person that I'm so excited to meet because I know that I have such a spiritual connection to them, so I can't wait to meet this new member of my family."

Another important part of Fox's life has been her faith. Growing up in Tennessee, she attended a Pentecostal church. As she shared with Esquire, she has been able to speak in tongues since the age of 8. She described the experience, saying, "The energy is so intense in the room ... that you feel like anything can happen. They're going to hate that I compare it to this, but have you ever watched footage of a Santeria gathering or someone doing voodoo? You know how palpable the energy is? Whatever's going on there, it's for real."

Fox went even further to describe herself and why she has gone to church. She said, "I can't stand pills. I don't like drinking. I don't like feeling out of control. ... I have to feel like I'm in control of my body. And I know what you're thinking, Then why would I want to go to church and speak in tongues? ... You have to understand, there I feel safe. I was raised to believe that you're safe in God's hands. But I don't feel safe with myself."

If you don't want Megan Fox to do something, please don't tell her not to do it. As she said in an interview with Cosmopolitan, "As soon as you tell me to do one thing, I do the opposite. ... As soon as someone tells me not to get any more tattoos, I have this intense fire burning inside me to cover myself with them. I don't care if it's self-destructive. I just have that need to rebel." 

We're sure loads of people told her not to go after her now-hubby Brian Austin Green when she was 18 and he was 30. See how that turned out? Maybe someone told her she shouldn't work things out with Green during their split. We know she dealt with adversity in school because of her dream of becoming an actress, but it's obvious that only pummelled her further and faster toward her goal. It's safe to say she'll have a few more rebellious moments, and all we can do is wait and see what comes next for this star.