MORE June 2015 Cover

Spy star Melissa McCarthy covers the June issue of MORE and opens up about launching her own clothing line, Melissa McCarthy Seven7, letting go of the pressure to be perfect, and raising daughters – Vivian, 8, and Georgette, 5 – with husband, fellow actor Ben Falcone.

On how society body-shames plus-size women: “People don’t stop at size 12. I feel like there’s a big thing missing where you can’t dress to your mood above a certain number. [Malls] segregate plus-size [women]. It’s an odd thing that you can’t go shopping with your friends because your store is upstairs hidden by the tire section. We’ll put you gals over there because we don’t want to see you and you probably don’t want to be seen…There is just this weird thing about how we perceive women in this country. I would love to be a part of breaking that down.”

On raising daughters and watching how she thinks/talks about herself: “I have caught my reflection and thought, Oof. That girl is struggling. That girl is tired. I’ve had mornings where I’m like, Oh God, I have weird hair. I look like Fraggle Rock. Why am I so puffy? What did I eat? [But] who cares if my eyes are puffy because I ate 44 almonds last night? Or my legs are short? To my core, I don’t care.”

On letting go of the pressure to be perfect: “Pre-kids, I’d cook for 50 people. I’d have schedules, time charts. Being in my forties, I can finally relax. I’ve learned that you can order pizza and have your friends over, and it’s just as fun because nobody cares. Nobody wants to be around you if you’ve been up since 3 a.m. brining a chicken. I’ve let go of that quest for perfection.”

On being a feminist: “When I told my daughters there had never been a female president, they were like, ‘What! How is that possible?’ I have an overactive sense of justice. I want women to realize you don’t have to work for the company. You can run the company. I want the scope for them to be endless.”

For more from Melissa, go to MORE…