Kate Winslet Talks Being Comfortable With Her Body After Filming Topless Scene In The War Biopic 'Lee'

Kate Winslet revealed that she has become more confident about shooting nude scenes as an actress. The Academy Award winner now knows better than to "criticize her physical self" and avoid cameras. She posed topless on screen for her new film, "Lee."

Despite positive reviews from its first screening, she initially struggled to get funding for the biopic. Winslet expressed anger at some male directors she met who spoke condescendingly to her about the project. However, she's proud of how much women have evolved to care less about nudity in the film industry. 

Keep on reading to learn more.

Winslet spoke on her newfound confidence with nudity for the October 2023 issue of Vogue. The "Titanic" actress revealed that she's now more comfortable posing without clothes in front of a camera. After decades as an actress, the 47-year-old has come to care less about people's opinions on her body.

In her conversation with the fashion magazine, Winslet noted, "I know better than to waste precious energy on criticizing my physical self." The actress then called out to others in her shoes to follow in her footsteps and say to themselves, "I believe in myself. It doesn't matter what other people think; this is who I am—let's get on with it."

This has helped her get through several uncomfortable scenes and situations in the past. However, Winslet reminds herself that it's all show biz and acting is her job. She said, "I always have to act everything out!" 

Oscar award winner Winslet stars in the biopic "Lee," where she reportedly poses nude on the beach. During her chat with Vogue, Winslet recalled how she summoned bravery to get into the character for the topless scene. She said, "You know I had to be really f**king brave about letting my body be its softest version of itself and not hiding from that."

The star also recalled talking back at people who would comment on her body on set. She stated, per Daily Mail, "People amongst our own team would say, 'You might just want to sit up a bit.' And I'd go, 'Why? [Because of] the bit of flesh you can see? No, that's the way it's going to be!'"

Winslet was proud of the film's positive reviews following the Toronto International Film Festival screening in September. However, the "Mare of Easttown" star explained how hard it was to find investors for the biopic initially. Winslet noted that some studios' male directors responded condescendingly, which upset her.

She said, "The men who think you want and need their help are unbelievably outraging. I've even had a director say to me: 'Listen, you do my film and I'll get your little Lee funded.'" Another investor angered her by saying, "Tell me, why am I supposed to like this woman?"

Over two decades ago, Winslet wowed the public with her iconic nude scene in the critically acclaimed film, "Titanic" helmed by famous director James Cameron.

The actress who starred as Rose DeWitt in the movie posed for her lover, Jack Dawson (played by Leonardo DiCaprio), in a part where she asks him to draw her "like one of his French girls."

In the scene, she takes off her clothes and poses nude on a couch, wearing only a very expensive necklace. Following her role in the movie, she reunited with the renowned director to play Na'vi in the 2022 "Avatar" sequel, "The Way of Water."

Despite the recent challenges faced by women in the film industry, Winslet is very proud of how far they have come from when she first started acting. Winslet explained that women were now more confident about their bodies than two decades before.

While she was able to make the nude scene with DiCaprio, she never envisioned a time when fellow actresses would be even more daring and "unafraid." The star felt "proud" of herself for being an inspiration to the younger generation.

She explained, "All the struggle, all the using my voice for years, often being finger-pointed at and laughed at - I don't give a sh*t! It was all bloody worth it." 

Now more than ever, she's ready to continue supporting women in her own ways. "Because the culture is changing in the way that I couldn't in my wildest dreams have imagined in my 20s," Winslet stated, per Daily Mail.