Jennifer Lawrence Recalls “Abusive” Treatment From Hollywood Execs as a Young Star

Movie star Jennifer Lawrence isn't one to hold her tongue. The candid actress recently sat down with CNN's Christiane Amanpour to reveal she too endured abusive treatment during her Hollywood career. The 27-year-old Red Sparrow star described her most recent film as the perfect movie for the #MeToo movement.

"When I hear the harrowing stories of the victims of Harvey Weinstein, I don't feel right putting myself in that exact category," she explained during the interview. "I was certainly mistreated. I was definitely treated in a way I think now we would call abusive. I mean I had to deal with being young and having executives or higher-ups putting their hands on my legs, and not feeling like I could say 'please don't do that.'"

Jennifer Lawrence tells me that a producer made her line up “essentially naked” alongside other women “to illustrate to me that I was overweight.” pic.twitter.com/rUKPAmnvLt

— Christiane Amanpour (@amanpour) February 28, 2018

The actress told the story of a "mentally brutal" occurrence between herself and a female producer, who had her strip down to the point of being "essentially naked" alongside other women to illustrate that she was "overweight." J.Law has been open about the fact that she is considered "fat" by Hollywood standards and how that's led to insecurities surrounding her body.

"I had… a lot of insecurities when it came to sexuality and nudity and my body and I've just been carrying them around for years," she added. Agreeing to star in Red Sparrow signified a moment where she decided not to let those insecurities impact her career. The role required a nude scene that she said made her feel "empowered."

Jennifer with her Red Sparrow cast at the NYC premiere.

"I feel like this is a perfect movie that we need right now. I think that in all of our test screenings for women, and just for me, I find it incredibly empowering," she continued. The movie follows ballerina Dominika Egorova (portrayed by Jennifer Lawrence) as she uses her body as a weapon for a Russian intelligence service. She added, "And also, it opens up the conversation for the difference between consent and not consent. And, you know… I had the choice. I'm an adult. I made a decision. I knew what I was doing and that's really the end of the story — the two aren't comparable."

Red Sparrow hits theaters on March 2.