Hollywood star Natalie Portman, 43, has opened up about how she endured the pitfalls of sexualization as a young star in the business.
In an open interview with actress Jenna Ortega of Interview magazine, Portman explained how she felt sexualized as a teenager, especially when it came to her first screen outing in the 1994 film Leon: The Professional that she shot at age 12.
Portman indicated that the public persona of her self was not the actual individual, highlighting the way she had been sexualized from an early age, which she feels occurs to so many young girls in the industry. Recalling how she used to feel, she described, "I think there is a public image of me that doesn't match who I am. I was just very sexualized as a kid, and I think this is what happens to lots of young girls on TV. I was really afraid of it. Obviously sexuality is a large part of growing up, but I wanted it to be in me, not directed at me."
To safeguard herself in her early years, Portman evolved a tactic of projecting an image of being "so serious" and "studious." She continued, "I'm smart, and that's not the kind of girl you attack." She characterized this persona as a defense mechanism that enabled her to remain somewhat distant from unwanted advances. "I was like, if I develop this image of myself, I'll be left alone. It shouldn't be a thing, but it worked."
Ortega, who began acting as a child and is now 22, spoke to Portman, explaining that she has a "kinship" with other child stars. Ortega considered how, when she talks to actresses from earlier generations, she finds their stories "heartwarming but also at the same time devastating" because of the jarring difference between how things were managed in the past and how they are managed today.
The conversation moved towards the manner in which Hollywood treats young female actresses in the long term and how much its practice has been altered. Ortega also observed how privileged she had been in childhood as well as throughout her career as compared to someone like Portman, who endured so much a harsher childhood throughout their teenage years.
Portman's introspection illuminates the realities and tensions of coming to terms with growing up in the public eye and the complicated ways that actors, particularly women, manage their identities and others' expectations.
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