Florence Pugh was scared by the outraged reaction to her nipples but is not going to hide her body (Picture: Getty/Elle UK /Danny Kasirye)
Florence Pugh admits she found the outrage to a red carpet outfit that showed her nipples frightening.
The Oppenheimer star, 27, made headlines last year when she rocked a jaw-dropping look to a Valentino Haute Couture event, in a sheer pink gown that left little to the imagination.
Her choice of outfit led to a lot of reaction – some impressed, others outraged, with Florence hitting back at the time and asking ‘why are you so scared of breasts?’
Now the star has reflected on the intense reaction and admits she found it scary – but she will not hide her body.
‘I speak the way I do about my body because I’m not trying to hide the cellulite on my thigh or the squidge in between my arm and my boob: I would much rather lay it all out,’ she said in an interview with Elle magazine.
‘I think the scariest thing for me are the instances where people have been upset that I’ve shown “too much” of myself. When everything went down with the Valentino pink dress a year ago, my nipples were on display through a piece of fabric, and it really wound people up.”
Florence wore the eye-catching Valentino gown to a major fashion event (Picture: Getty Images)
The star, who is gracing the cover of Elle UK’s October issue, went on: ‘It’s the freedom that people are scared of; the fact I’m comfortable and happy.
‘Keeping women down by commenting on their bodies has worked for a very long time. I think we’re in this swing now where lots of people are saying, “I don’t give a s**t.”‘
Florence, being interviewed by friend and fellow actor Jodie Turner-Smith, said society has ‘become so terrified of the human body that we can’t even look at my two little cute nipples behind fabric in a way that isn’t sexual.’
‘We need to keep reminding everybody that there is more than one reason for women’s bodies [to exist].’
The interview comes as Florence prepares to receive the British Icon award at the Elle Style Awards 2023.
The star hit out at people being afraid of women’s bodies, and admitted she found the reaction scary (Picture: Elle UK / Danny Kasirye)
The reaction hasn’t put Florence off showing her body (Picture: WireImage)
And the award comes as no surprise – since making her acting debut less than a decade ago, Florence has starred in some absolutely massive films, cementing her as a proper Hollywood star at a young age.
As well as her acting abilities, Florence is confident and comfortable in her skin, and last year responded to criticism of her Valentino dress and said she had expected there to be ‘commentary’ on it.
‘I was excited to wear it, not a wink of me was nervous. I wasn’t before, during or even now after.’
Ripping into men who had left cruel or sexist comments online, she added: ‘What’s been interesting to watch and witness is just how easy it is for men to totally destroy a woman’s body, publicly, proudly, for everyone to see. You even do it with your job titles and work emails in your bio..?’
The 26-year-old went on: ‘It isn’t the first time and certainly won’t be the last time a woman will hear what’s wrong with her body by a crowd of strangers, what’s worrying is just how vulgar some of you men can be.
The star had hit back at men who left ‘vulgar’ comments about her body and said she wold contnue to ‘free the nipple’ (Picture: Elle UK / Danny Kasirye)
‘Thankfully, I’ve come to terms with the intricacies of my body that make me, me. I’m happy with all of the ‘flaws’ that I couldn’t bear to look at when I was 14.
‘So many of you wanted to aggressively let me know how disappointed you were by my “tiny t*ts”, or how I should be embarrassed by being so “flat chested”. I’ve lived in my body for a long time. I’m fully aware of my breast size and am not scared of it.
‘What’s more concerning is…. Why are you so scared of breasts? Small? Large? Left? Right? Only one? Maybe none? What. Is. So. Terrifying.’
Florence went on to ask what has happened to people who are content to be ‘loudly upset’ by the size of her boobs, and ordered them to ‘grow up.’
She finished her post by saying: #f**kingfreethef**kingnipple’.
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She said society had ‘become so terrified of the human body’.