Emma Thompson on filming her first nude scene—'It's very challenging to be nude at 62'

Emma Thompson has opened up about filming her first nude scene at the age of 62, which is set to appear in her new film Good Luck to You, Leo Grande.

Stripping off and baring all can be a challenge for many of us, particularly as we get older. But recent celebrity posts such as Dawn French's nude selfie and Carol Vorderman's snaps in a nude bikini have encouraged older women to challenge the myth that nudity is a young woman's game. 

One celebrity has taken it one step further by appearing fully nude in a newly released project. In a recent interview with Cinema Cafe, Emma Thompson has opened up about her upcoming nude scene which is set to appear in her new drama-comedy movie, Good Luck to You, Leo Grande. 

The film, which premiered at the Sundance film festival on January 22, 2022, centers on a widow Nancy Stokes (Emma Thompson) who hires a male escort (Daryl McCormack) in the hopes of having her first-ever orgasm. 

Given the sex-positive plotline, the actress decided that this film would be the right time for her to finally bare all on screen. Despite her career that spans decades, the actress has never appeared nude on screen and opened up in this interview about her decision to appear nude for the first time on-screen at the age of 62.

In the interview, Emma revealed that she spoke at length with her co-star and director Sophie Hyde about how they prepared for this scene with a small closed set.

"Our first day, Sophie, Daryl, and I rehearsed entirely nude. Which was amazing, and talked about our bodies, talked about our relationship with our bodies, drew them, discussed the things that we find difficult about, things we like about them, described one another's bodies,"

"It was a sort of very pure experience," said Emma as she reflected on the usually packed set that most actors experience when filming nude scenes and said that instead, she had a 'sacred space' to prepare this scene.

Despite the comfort on set, Emma revealed that it was still very challenging to bare all. "It's very challenging to be nude at 62, especially in a world where nothing has changed in the dreadful demands made upon women in the real-world world but also in acting." 

"This thing of having to be thin is still the same as it ever was, and actually in some ways I think it's worse now."

She explained that she felt she should appear nude in this film as it was important for her character. Although you may think that Emma felt most empowered by a nude love scene which could be a contender for the best movie sex scenes of all time, it was actually a far more powerful moment in the film which she felt most proud of filming nude.

"At the end of this film this woman does something very extraordinary which I've never done in my whole life," said Emma.

"She stands in front of a mirror alone, and she drops her robe and she stands completely relaxed in front of the mirror and looks at her body. Not with approval but with no particular judgment."

"I realized when I came to act it that it was something that I had to act because I had never done it, but I'd never stood in front of a mirror without judging."

The actress added, "I don't think I could have done it before the age that I am, and yet of course the age that I am makes it extremely challenging because we aren't used to seeing untreated bodies on the screen."

The actress concluded by saying that it was "time that we did more to change that," and she was glad that she was given the opportunity to appear nude in this film.