Sarah Jessica Parker – who was recently voted Maxim’s least sexy woman in the world – seems to have a pretty good perspective on the whole situation. Parker says she’s been criticized for her looks since she was a teenager staring in plays, but instead of letting it get her down she’s learned not to think about the critiques. In an upcoming interview with Allure magazine, Parker notes that her looks are uncommon, but points out that most of the women we see in magazines, movies, and on television are extremely airbrushed. Instead of just pressuring women to look that way, Parker questions the taste of men who prefer such an unrealistic appearance.

Men who prefer an airbrushed woman to a real one are “common” according to Sarah Jessica Parker who tops Maxim’s Unsexiest Woman list. The actress, who won the title at the end of last year, is finally biting back saying: “My impression is that what they find sexy doesn’t make them interesting or unusual or special. That makes them common.”

Parker, 42, also says she is not offended by being told she is not sexy. When she first found out she had won the title the Sex and the City actress thought: “My God – I’m the unsexiest woman in the world.

“My instinct was that it felt personal. It was really about: ‘We don’t like her’. Who were the judges and critics? I would like to ask them: ‘What exactly is it that you personally find not sexy about me? Is it my figure? Is it my brain that bothers you?… That’s the beauty of this country – we can have different opinions and coexist and be amused by each other and hurt and offended.”

[From Showbiz Spy]

Clearly her unconventional (by Hollywood standards) looks haven’t hurt Parker – she’s dated a slew of attractive men, including JFK Jr. and Robert Downey Jr. Parker says she got used to playing the unattractive girl roles.

“For so long, I didn’t play the object of attention or affection. “It wasn’t until LA Story [in which she played one of Steve Martin’s love interests] that anyone cast me in a role that had my sexuality as a point of interest or focus or operation. I just wasn’t examined in the same way that a ‘pretty girl’ would be.”

Despite her early success, criticism about her looks was not uncommon in the industry. Parker says: “There were some not-terribly-veiled conversations.”

The star was encouraged to change her appearance. She says: “Anything from as silly as plucking my eyebrows to getting my nose fixed. Nothing that stayed in my brain for very long.”

[From Showbiz Spy]

I don’t think Sarah Jessica Parker is ugly or unsexy, she’s just got her own, unique look. If she hadn’t started playing the “object of affection” type roles, I doubt anyone would comment on her appearance. It seems like people didn’t make those comments until Sex and the City, when she was held up as a style icon. That focus makes people think in more superficial, appearance-based terms. Coupled with the show’s huge audience and the way it became such a pop culture icon, it provided a lot of opportunities for people to criticize. Clearly Sarah Jessica is incredibly smart, and the fact that she’s been able to examine the whole situation in such a rational fashion proves that. She’s currently filming the Sex and the City movie, which is scheduled to open in theaters on May 30th.

Picture note by Jaybird: Sarah Jessica Parker filming the Sex and the City movie at the New York City public library on November 28th. Images thanks to PR Photos.