While all of the Hollywood insiders are busy declaring this The Year of Alicia Vikander, I have to say that I think 2015 is really The Year of Elizabeth Banks. She directed, produced and starred in the mega-hit Pitch Perfect 2. PP2 was so successful that a third Pitch Perfect has been greenlighted and Banks might direct it too. She’s getting Oscar buzz for Love & Mercy. She’s got a fun supporting part in Magic Mike XXL. She’s in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay Part 2. And she’s filming Wet Hot American Summer: First Day At Camp. It really is The Year of Banks. Bless her. So it’s no surprise that Banks has gotten another magazine cover, this time with Flaunt Mag. Elizabeth joked on Instagram that it looks “like I was dipped in Vaseline and loved every second of it.” Some highlights from the interview:

Whether the industry is less fair to women over 40: “I am 41. That’s true…Not for Sandra Bullock! Not for Meryl Streep! Not for Naomi Watts! I got plenty to do!”

On-screen May-December romances: “The men get all older and all the women stay the same age…that’s true… My male peers in this business would rather be in a romantic relationship in a film with a 28-year-old. I’ll give you that. But it’s for the exact same reason I would prefer to be in a movie with Zac Efron! Because they’re beautiful! They’re sexy! They keep you feeling young, fresh! I guess my point is that I understand the impulse. It’s a bummer, but I think it’s important to remember.”

Inequality in the industry: “Women want to work because what we realized is that when you take that time to go away for six years and get your kids into first grade, people don’t hire you. They f–king forget about you… It’s bad for you, if you actually want to work and make money. Men want us to make money because they like having boats. They like going on vacations. They like motorcycles. And they’re not getting them on their salary alone.”

[From E! News]

Elizabeth Banks pretty much falls consistently into the feminist category of “if men can be ballers, so can I.” She approaches her career with that gung-ho, “let’s throw everything at the problem and just fight to the death” attitude. But no, she shouldn’t do a movie with Zac Efron. That would be bad for her career, just because Zac’s “movie star” attempt isn’t really happening. But I would be all for seeing Banks with a younger love interest, like Channing Tatum or… Kit Harington. Or something.

Photos courtesy of Flaunt.