Shailene Woodley Cuts (and Donates) Her Hair for The Fault In Our Stars

Stylewatch Style News Now

08/17/2013 at 11:09 AM ET

Courtesy of Shailene Woodley

Shailene Woodley is almost as well-known for her gorgeous, long hair as she is for her buzzworthy roles in films like The Descendants and The Spectacular Now. But as of Friday night, the actress no longer can lay claim to those luscious locks — she cut them off for her role as a cancer patient in The Fault of Our Stars, and in honor of the character, donated them to Children With Hair Loss.

Woodley and the Fault In Our Stars author John Green had been gearing up for the actress’s big chop all week, with Woodley tweeting Friday afternoon, “a few more hours & my hair will be worn by someone new. what does your hair situation look like?? #hairforhazel.”

And the two shared the big reveal later that night. After Woodley shared a few teaser pics (first scissors, then “hair nubbins,” as she called them), Green posted a photo of the star holding up her first pigtail after it got sliced off.

RELATED PHOTOS: See more stars that have made major hair changes lately.

Prior to cutting her hair, Woodley got philosophical about it on her Tumblr. “For the past five years I’ve been on an I-want-to-grow-my-hair-as-long-as-possible kick … About half way through my hair-growing escapade, I began to deeply look at WHY I was so keen on creating flowing locks down my spine,” she wrote. “I finally came to the conclusion that hair, for me, was a symbol of strength … For the longest time, I was committed to never chopping it off. Cut to: now. On Saturday, it will be the shortest it’s ever been. and I feel so relieved, so ready, so dedicated.”

She also added that Green filled her in on how many fans had donated their own hair in honor of the project, keeping the author and actress apprised of their donations with the hashtags #hairforhazel and #itgrowsback. “I am in tears. HOW GRATEFUL I AM FOR OUR ABILITY TO GIVE!” she wrote.

Want to join Woodley and Green in their mission to donate hair to children who don’t have it? If you have at least eight inches to give, check out their chosen charity, and get snipping (and Tweeting!) to spread the word.

Tell us: Are you inspired by Woodley’s big cut? Have you done (or would you do) the same?

–Alex Apatoff