Two Hollywood stars were today engaged in a public spat over bodyshaming.
Natalie Portman, 37, said this week she had been “confused” as a teenager when she saw a picture of a bikini-clad Jessica Simpson in a magazine alongside a statement which said “I’m a virgin”.
However, she was forced to apologise today after Simpson publicly accused Portman of criticising “other women for their choices”.
Posting on Instagram, Simpson, 38, who found fame as a teen pop star in the Nineties, said: “Being sexy in a bikini, and being proud of my body, are not synonymous with having sex.”
Tagging Portman in the post, Simpson wrote: “I was disappointed when I read that I ‘confused’ you by wearing a bikini in a published photo taken of me when I was still a virgin in 1999.
“As public figures, we both know our image is not totally in our control at all times, and the industry we work in often tries to define us and box us in.”
She continued: “I have made it my practice to not shame other women for their choices. I encourage you to do the same.”
Portman made the initial comments to USA Today while promoting her upcoming film Vox Lux, about a girl who becomes viral pop superstar.
She said: “I remember being a teenager, and there was Jessica Simpson on a magazine cover saying ‘I’m a virgin’ while wearing a bikini, and I was confused. Like, I don’t know what this is trying to tell me as a woman.”
Following Simpson’s post, Portman replied: “I agree a woman should be allowed to dress however she likes… and not be judged. I only meant I was confused by the media’s mixed messages about how girls were supposed to behave. I didn’t mean to shame you and I’m sorry for any hurt my words may have caused.”
It is not clear which magazine Portman and Simpson were referring to.
