OppenheimeractressFlorence Pughis sharing a body positive message. In a recent interview alongsideQueen & Slimactress Jodie Turner-Smith, Pugh opens up about accepting herself and how she’s dealt with scrutiny surrounding her bold fashion choices. In July 2022, Pugh wore a flowing magenta Valentino gown to the design house’s couture show in Rome. The gown was sheer and that sparked internet debates about the dress' appropriateness.
Revisiting that topic in an interview forELLEmagazine’s October’s edition, Pugh told Turner-Smith that she found it scary how upset people have become that she’s chosen to show “too much” of herself:
“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. 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.
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 shit.’ Unfortunately, we’ve 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].”
A week after her Valentino gown made headlines, Pugh took to social media to address comments made about her body, calling out “vulgar” men who “aggressively” commented on the size of her breasts. She ended her post (viaInstagram) by urging readers to “Grow up. Respect people. Respect bodies. Respect all women. Respect humans.”
Related:Oppenheimer Viewer Goes Viral With Video Revealing How to Avoid the Sex Scenes: ‘I Don’t Want My Night to Be Ruined’
Florence Pugh’s Sex Scenes Spark Debate
Besides critiques of Pugh’s style choices, the actresses sex scenes have also been a hot topic of conversation during her successful career. In August 2022, Pugh declined to speak about sex scenes between her and Harry Styles from Olivia Wilde’sDon’t Worry Darlingas she felt those types of conversations were reductive to the people that had worked on the film.
Pugh’s most recent film,Oppenheimer, is now in theaters and stars Pugh opposite Cillian Murphy and Emily Blunt in the critically acclaimed Christopher Nolan film. WhileOppenheimerhas amassed praise for its cast and crew and grossed over $800 million in the global box office, some viewers have expressed discontent with the film’s love scenes.
The film’s first sex scene between J. Robert Oppenheimer (Murphy) and his mistress Jean Tatlock (Pugh) has even led to calls from India’s right fora film ban in the country. During the scene, Jean’s attention focuses on a book on Oppenheimer’s bookshelf,Bhagavad Gita.She pulls the book, considered one of Hinduism’s holiest scriptures,from the shelf and asks Oppenheimer to read from it. He obliges, reading:“Now I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds.”
Nolan has addressed the film’sexploration of Oppenheimer’s love life, saying the scenes between Murphy and Pugh are crucial to understanding the titular character:
“It felt very important to understand their relationship and to really see inside it and understand what made it tick without being coy or allusive about it—to try to be intimate, to try and be in there with him and fully understand the relationship that was so important to him.”
Murphy has also addressed criticism surrounding the scene while praising Pugh:
“Those scenes were written deliberately. He knew that those scenes would get the movie the rating that it got. And I think when you see it, it’s so f—ing powerful. And they’re not gratuitous. They’re perfect. And Florence is just amazing.”
