Nude scenes are no longer the means for a B-list starlet to grab a bit of attention before her star fades for good; they’re no longer what a young actress is forced to do before she makes it big and starts demanding those “no-nudity” contract clauses.
Nudity–and, often, very explicit sex scenes–is what you do if you want to go gunning for a prime spot on the A-list and be seen as a “real” actress. Look no further than A-listers such as Nicole Kidman, Julianne Moore and Halle Berry for proof: When they took it off, their careers took off.
But Natalie Portman was confident enough in her status to tell director Mike Nichols that she didn’t want a nude scene in “Closer,” the sexually charged drama that opens Friday. Although there’s been a lot of buzz about her decision, Portman–who plays a stripper in the film–claims it wasn’t really a big deal.
“When you trust someone, you’re willing to do everything and make mistakes and really expose yourself inside and out,” Portman said. “I didn’t think it was crucial to the scene. I thought it was distracting, if anything, to have it at the head of the scene.”
But many stars are doing nude scenes matter-of-factly. Kidman dropped any pretenses about nudity from the start. She bared herself early and often, from 1989’s “Dead Calm” and 1991’s “Billy Bathgate” to the more recent “Cold Mountain” and “The Human Stain,” and her A-list credentials only grew more golden.
Moore’s famous nude scene in “Short Cuts” (1993)–an angry fight with her husband (Matthew Modine) while she isn’t wearing any pants–remains one of the most debated scenes in recent movie history. Gratuitous or not, the scene got people’s attention, and led to her part as the porn star in “Boogie Nights” (1997), which earned Moore her first Oscar nomination.
Most moviegoers and critics used to regard Berry as not much more than a pretty face with the canny ability to “exploit” her body (witness her reported huge “bonus” for going topless in 2001’s “Swordfish”). But then she got naked again, and played a raw, lengthy, emotionally draining sex scene in “Monster’s Ball” (2001). A few months later she was holding an Oscar.
Diane Lane reinvented her career (and got an Oscar nomination) for the steamy “Unfaithful.”
Director Ron Howard has repeatedly said he hadn’t considered Jennifer Connelly for her Oscar-winning part in “A Beautiful Mind.” Until, that is, he saw “Requiem for a Dream” (2000), Darren Aronofsky’s grim indie drug-addiction drama that ends with Connelly at a sex party.
The message to other movie actresses is pretty obvious: The more naked and unstrung you are, the more seriously you will be taken.
Still, there are those like Portman who can afford to draw the line, even with a big-time director like Nichols.
“We made sort of a pact before we started to shoot that we would just do everything and then he’d cut it the way he saw fit, show it to me and see if I agreed,” she said. “And that’s what happened. We both kept our parts of the deal.”
Strip search
While some actresses will drop their top without hesitation for any director who asks, some, including Julia Roberts and Winona Ryder, have steadfastly refused to appear nude on film. But for many, it’s a film-by-film decision based on many factors, including artistic merit, salary, personal values or career opportunity. Here are a few actresses and actors and how they’ve dealt with nudity during their careers.
Halle Berry
After refusing to appear nude in any film, Berry did a topless scene in “Swordfish” that a producer of the film said earned her a $500,000 bonus. Berry denied the claim, saying she did the scene because it was liberating.
Sarah Jessica Parker
The former “Sex and the City” star always appeared in at least a bra in her bedroom scenes, the result of a no-nudity clause in her contract. “I don’t think it’s necessary for anything I’ve done, although I have absolutely no opinions against anyone who feels comfortable doing it,” she told E!Online in 2000.
Heather Graham
She appeared completely nude in “Boogie Nights” while playing a porn star, but in the 2002 flop “The Guru” she had a no-nudity clause while playing … a porn star.
Neve Campbell
After years of requiring no-nudity clauses in her films, she took it all off for this year’s “When Will I Be Loved,” which tanked at the box office. “[The nudity] did make sense, so I didn’t feel I was compromising myself,” Campbell told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
Christina Ricci
While she has played overtly sexual characters in several films, Ricci didn’t appear naked until last year’s “Monster.” “My agent persuaded me to go for it,” Ricci said. “She keeps saying ‘You have beautiful breasts.’ “
Shannon Elizabeth
She gained fame for her provocative nude scene in “American Pie,” but told Maxim magazine it’s not true that she now requires a no-nudity clause in all her films.
Linda Fiorentino
Has appeared naked in several films, but also fought–and won–a two-year legal battle against a producer who wanted her to appear in sex scenes despite having a no-nudity clause in her contract. Financing for the film, a biopic of painter Georgia O’Keefe, fell apart after Fiorentino refused to do nude scenes.
Elizabeth Berkley
Some actresses choose to appear nude to change their image, and nobody used that more than Berkley, who first gained fame in the wholesome TV series, “Saved By The Bell” but then gained notoriety for appearing nude as a stripper in “Showgirls.”
Colin Farrell
His nude scene didn’t help “Alexander” at the box office, and a full-frontal shot was cut from the summer release of “A Home at the End of the World” because–rumor had it–test audiences found it “distracting.”
Freddie Prinze Jr.
The “Scooby Doo” star told CosmoGirl he would never do any nudity. “I have a no-nudity clause in BIG BLACK LETTERS in my contracts. No one but my girl will ever see my ass, and that’s just the way it is.”–REDEYE; NEWS SERVICES CONTRIBUTED.
