Whether actresses should routinely be required to disrobe for their roles in movies is a hotly debated subject of late. Some, such as Annette Bening, the Oscar-nominated actress who took it all off for "Valmont" and "The Grifters," and Uma Thurman, who similarly did nude scenes for "The Adventures of Baron Munchausen" and "Henry & June," have no qualms about it - and have told reporters they wonder why some moviegoers are offended by nudity in films.
But others are starting to protest.Here are some interesting quotes from recent interviews with three prominent actresses on the subject:
- Julia Roberts, currently starring in "Sleeping With the Enemy," has never done a nude scene, and she told Scripps Howard's Luaine Lee she doesn't intend to:
"Right now in my life I don't feel compelled to do it. I never read a part that required it in a way that I felt was necessary. I'll be a hard case about it if I don't feel it's necessary. If I read a part where I think this woman should be naked, I'll tell them to find somebody great who'll be naked."
- Jamie Lee Curtis, currently starring in the TV sitcom "Anything But Love," appeared nude in several films during the 1980s but said in an interview with Mark Morrison for the Feb. 21 issue of Us magazine, she won't be doing it again:
"Almost every single script I read has a nude scene. . . . But now I will not do it - anything that takes away from my work, that makes you think about me and not the character, is bad."
- Virginia Madsen, who recently co-starred with Don Johnson in "The Hot Spot," has also done nude scenes in the past but now refuses, as she told gossipmonger Marilyn Beck:
"Even if the audience isn't going to see you totally nude, you still have to be nude on the set." Madsen added that she succumbed to "required nudity" pressure in earlier films because she didn't want to be labeled a "problem actress." "There's always like four guys standing around saying, `What's your problem? What's wrong with the human body?' Nothing's wrong with the human body, but I don't really want to take my clothes off anymore. So many times I've heard the same lines come out of directors' mouths: `Yes, but it's going to be so tastefully done' or `But the character would do that.' "
- HOW TO HANDLE A REPORTER: At the premiere of "Once Around" back in January, a reporter and photographer from Us magazine cornered the film's stars - as Us often does at Hollywood gatherings - and the result is an interesting look at how differently a veteran handles the press as compared to a relative novice.
Richard Dreyfuss and Holly Hunter are shown in separate photos on a page labeled "Faces & Places" in the March 7 issue, and the respective captions reveal that the reporter asked both actors the same question, a question related directly to the plot of "Once Around" - Have you (like Hunter's character in the film) ever dated someone your parents didn't like?
Granted, it's a silly, frivolous question, but Hunter apparently got huffy with the reporter, while Dreyfuss simply turned it into a joke.
Hunter: "I won't answer a question like that."
Dreyfuss: "Yeah, they were all journalists."
- MADONNA UPDATE: After a hit with "Desperately Seeking Susan," then a pair of flops with "Shanghai Surprise" and "Who's That Girl?" Madonna struck big-screen gold again last year with her appearance in "Dick Tracy."
So what's next, you may be asking - will the Material One pursue a big-screen career?
Does Sean Penn like to punch out paparazzi?
Madonna will next be on the silver screen with a concert film, then she was supposed to be seen in a Woody Allen movie, followed by - are you ready? - a buddy-cop picture with Demi Moore.
We should mention that she will also appear on the March 25 Oscar show, singing a nominated song from "Dick Tracy."
Then comes Madonna's concert movie, scheduled to hit theaters nationally in May, carrying the over-the-top title "Truth or Dare: On the Road, Behind the Scenes and In Bed with Madonna," a chronicle of last year's "Blonde Ambition" world tour, which, you may recall, culminated in an HBO TV special. (If the movie is anything like that special I may call in sick that week.)
She was then to be seen in Woody Allen's latest movie "Shadows and Fog," but a Reuter news story last week said her role was cut out of the movie because Allen was not pleased with her performance as a circus artist.
That has apparently had no affect on other moviemakers' interest in her, however, since she is now reportedly preparing to team up with Demi Moore in a female "Lethal Weapon" - or maybe it's a big-screen "Cagney & Lacey" - called "Leda & Swan," due to start production in the fall for release during the summer of '92.
Come to think of it, that's just about the time "Lethal Weapon 3" is scheduled to show up.
Gosh, if we're lucky maybe it'll be a real season for buddy-cops - how about "The Hard Way 2," "Feds 2" or the long-awaited "Alien Nation 2"?