Scarlett Johansson Talks Being 'Groomed' & 'Typecast' As Young Actress

Scarlett Johansson is spilling some dirt about her former management team.

The Dane beauty, who dreamt of being an actress after an off-Broadway play, achieved her goal when she debuted in the 1994 fantasy comedy, "North" and earned early recognition for her appearance in "Manny & Lo" and "The Horse Whisperer."

She eventually shifted into more adult roles appearing in "Lost in Translation," which landed her a BAFTA Award for "Best Actress." She has continued gaining accolades for her work as an actress— whether it was playing a seductress or a troubled teen.

Johansson's Hollywood career has done her a world of good, including landing a spot on Time Magazine's 2021 list of the 100 most influential people in the world. Additionally, her films have grossed over a whopping $14.3 billion globally, thus making her the highest-grossing box office star of all time. 

Besides these enviable feats, the actress' facial and physical features make her easy on the eyes. Unfortunately, her beauty created an uncomfortable work environment for the "Black Widow" star, who recently revealed that so much more was happening behind the scenes. 

Speaking to iHeartRadio's "Table for Two" podcast host, Bruce Bozzi, Johansson claimed that her old management team "groomed" her into accepting "bombshell" roles at the beginning of her acting journey.

The Tony Award winner revealed how she began to see herself as a woman in her late teens. It was then that she started experimenting with her own "desirability and sexuality" — a move that did not necessarily reduce her chances of being typecast. In her words:

"I think because of that trajectory that I had been sort of launched towards, I really got stuck in this."

She further explained, "I was kind of being groomed in a way to be this what you call this bombshell type of actor. I was playing the other woman and this object of desire and, you know, I suddenly found myself cornered in this place, like, I couldn't get out of it."

The 38-year-old said she soon discerned that accepting roles centered around her physical looks would not last long, when she said, "I think for that kind of bombshell [role] that burns bright and quick, and then you don't have much opportunity beyond that, and I just felt like I was burning out so quickly."

Luckily, many things have changed for the actress, who is now a mother of two. In fact, she told Boxzi how having children has influenced the kind of acting projects she undertook, adding that it was important to teach children "to pursue work that is satisfying."

The "Nanny Diaries" star previously addressed how "hypersexualized" she was during an interview in October. Per The Blast, she stated that she became "objectified and pigeonholed" in a way that made her feel she was not getting offered the kind of projects that she wanted to do. 

The process soon stopped being desirable to her and instead gave her something to fight against. Johansson clarified that even though Hollywood had grown since her acting career began, the heavyweights still had a long way to go — especially in terms of the way rising female talents are treated.

As we mentioned earlier, Johansson is a mother to two kids — she shares a daughter Rose Dorothy Dauriac, with her ex-husband Romain Dauriac, and a son Cosmo Jost with her current husband, Colin Jost.

She spoke about how being a pregnant actress under people's microscopic focus can be damaging, The Blast reported. She also addressed her need to put the safety of her unborn kids first while navigating the emotional and physical toll that comes with conception:

"I've been so protective of both pregnancies, not wanting to feel scrutinized in the public eye. I wanted to be able to have my own feelings about my changing body without other people also telling me how they saw me, whether it was positive or negative."

When the "Summertime" singer was carrying her son last year, she realized how much pressure put on pregnant women. Things were so bad for Johansson that she had to endure scrutiny from strangers and loved ones.