J.Law bares all Getting naked with new man
Why the terrified actress feels compelled to bare all
Four years ago, hackers got into Jennifer Lawrence’s phone and publicly posted nude photos intended only for the eyes of her thenboyfriend, actor Nicholas Hoult. She described the incident as a “sex crime”, adding, “It’s scary when the whole world judges you.”
But now the 27-year-old Oscar winner is facing her biggest fear by getting naked again, this time for her role in the new thriller RedSparrow “There was a long period in my life when I didn’t want to be seen sexually and I didn’t want anybody to see my flesh, so I was definitely scared,” the actress tells Woman’s “But I knew that the only way to tell this story was if I agreed to really do the scenes and go there. “You can’t ask something from a character if you yourself aren’t willing to give. Telling the story in a way that pushed the envelope became more important than the fears I’ve carried around for years.” In the film, based on a novel written by a former CIA agent, Jennifer plays a Russian prima ballerina whose career ends after an injury. Struggling to support her sick mother, she is trained in the arts of manipulation and seduction in order to become a spy. This is how Jennifer found herself standing naked in front of a classroom in one graphic scene where teachers try to force her character to have sex with another student. “I was terrified, but I am happy I did it,” she concedes. “The night before, I didn’t sleep at all and I was really nervous because it is the actual nightmare of standing in front of a classroom naked. But after I finished the
scene, I felt really empowered and I still feel empowered today.”
What makes this even more extraordinary is Jennifer’s confession last week that she has been “mistreated” by film bosses in the past “in a way I think now we would call abusive”.
In a bombshell interview, the actress reveals, “I had to deal with being young and having executives or higher up put their hands on my legs and not feeling like I could say, ‘Please don’t do that.’”
Jennifer remembered one incident in particular where a producer asked her to strip naked and then compared her body to a “much thinner woman”, something she describes as “mentally brutal and dehumanising”.
Sosmitten!
After a year-long romance with her Mother! director Darren Aronofsky, 49, ended late last year, rumours have swirled that Jennifer still holds a candle for her ex,
AboutaBoy actor Nic, 28. However, last week, it was her flirtatious behaviour with Aussie co-star Joel Edgerton, 43, at the New York premiere of RedSparrow that was making headlines.
“Joel kept leaning in for kisses and laughing as he whispered into her ear,” a witness tells us. “They snuck out early and Jennifer’s car took them back to his hotel suite at the St Regis, which is where she said she stayed, despite having her own room at the Four Seasons.”
The hook-up comes a week after the actress reportedly skipped the BAFTA afterparties in order to meet up with a guy she’s been seeing, leading many to believe Jennifer and Joel are dating.
Indeed, an insider claims, “Jen’s completely smitten by Joel and they’ve been all over each other after months of flirting. Even before that, their friendship was so close, it
came in between her and Darren’s relationship on numerous occasions.
“Jen loves an older man and she’s told pals how she’s completely taken by Joel in every sense. She loves how passionate he is about acting while still being able to have a life beyond his career, which is what’s turned her off about many of her exes.”
StarWars and TheGreat Gatsby actor Joel has reportedly already met Jennifer’s parents on a trip to New York, where he received rave reviews. Our insider adds, “It’s still early days and Jen’s not rushing into things as she’s been down that road before. But she’s extremely happy. They have a huge amount of chemistry and Joel is just as hooked as she is, so it could definitely be the start of a great romance.”
However, Jennifer insists she’s not in a hurry to get back on the dating scene. “I’m single now and I’m realising there are actually way more advantages to being single,” she tells us. “I can do whatever I want whenever I want.”
For now, Jennifer says she’s fine with just her “small, brown mutt” Pippi – short for Pippi Lawrence-Stocking – to keep her warm at night.
“I don’t like to cook unless I’m trying to impress a guy, which isn’t happening any time soon, so I just use the microwave a lot,” she says. “Fun fact: I use my microwave for myself but not my dog because I don’t want her to get cancer – I don’t know what that says about me!”