‘It’s not brave’: Kate Winslet on portraying authentic women in films

Kate Winslet recently shared with Time magazine that female actors revealing their bodies or going without makeup on screen isn't an act of bravery; it's simply part of their role in portraying authentic women. 

The Oscar-winning actress has been promoting her latest film, "Lee", where she portrays renowned World War II photographer and journalist Lee Miller. In the film, Winslet appears in nude scenes and insisted on displaying her natural body.

"That's not brave. I'm not an ex-postmaster fighting for justice. I'm not in the Ukraine. I'm doing a job that matters to me," Winslet pointed out to Time.

Earlier this year, Kate Winslet revealed to Harper's Bazaar UK that while filming "Lee", a crew member suggested she should conceal her "belly rolls" during a scene where she wore a swimsuit. Winslet quickly dismissed the request.

Winslet stated, "There's a bit where Lee's sitting on a bench in a bikini. And one of the crew came up between takes and said, 'You might want to sit up straighter.' So you can't see my belly rolls? Not on your life! It was deliberate, you know?"

In the same interview, Winslet was asked if she feels bothered by appearing "less-than-perfect" on screen, to which she responded, "The opposite. I take pride in it because it is my life on my face, and that matters. It wouldn't occur to me to cover that up."

"People know better than to say, 'You might wanna do something about those wrinkles'. I'm more comfortable in myself as each year passes. It enables me to allow the opinions of others to evaporate," Winslet noted.

While promoting "Mare of Easttown" (2021), Winslet frequently mentioned that wearing makeup and stylish clothes on camera would have undermined the authenticity of her character. She told IndieWire that making Mare appear "kind of disgusting" on screen was essential, though she emphasised that it wasn't a "brave" decision either.

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"She's a hot mess most of the time, she doesn't care about what she looks like, she's kind of stopped caring what people even think about her. We made decisions creatively that this was a woman who looked at herself in the mirror when she brushed her teeth in the morning and would not look in the mirror again [all day]. That's just who she is. That's like most busy mothers I know — that's like me. It really is," Winslet explained.