Natalie Portman Lifts Lid on Hollywood's 'Pedophile' Obsession — As Actress Opens Up About Her 'Lolita' Phase and Being Ogled Over on Screen Aged 12
During the interview, Portman reflected back on her days as a young star and how that impacted her.
April 16 2025, Published 5:56 p.m. ET
Natalie Portman has lifted the lid on Hollywood's "pedophile" obsession.
The Black Swan actress, 43, had a chat with her co-star Jenna Ortega via Zoom, and the two discussed fame at a very young age, how to survive the business and so much more, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The actress first broke onto the film scene at just 13 years old.
During the interview, Portman reflected back on her days as a young star and how that impacted her.
The actress first broke onto the film scene at just 13 years old as Mathilda in Léon: The Professional.
Portwood explained during the chat with Ortega: "I think there's a public understanding of me that’s different from who I am. I’ve talked about it a little before—about how, as a kid, I was really sexualized, which I think happens to a lot of young girls who are onscreen. I felt very scared by it.
"Obviously sexuality is a huge part of being a kid, but I wanted it to be inside of me, not directed towards me. And I felt like my way of protecting myself was to be like, 'I’m so serious. I’m so studious. I’m smart, and that’s not the kind of girl you attack.' I was like, if I create this image of myself, I’ll be left alone.
"It shouldn’t be a thing, but it worked. But I think that’s the disconnect between me being stupid and silly in real life, and people thinking that I’m some really serious, bookish person. I’m not a particularly private person in real life—I’ll tell you anything—but in public, it was so clear early on that if you tell people how private you are, your privacy gets respected a lot more.
"I set up a little bit of a barrier to be like, 'I’m not going to do photo shoots with my kids.'"
The co-stars also spoke about how more women are now on film sets.
The co-stars, who are starring in the film The Gallerist together, also spoke about how more women are now on film sets.
Portman said: "So there was always this pocket on set where, as a kid, I felt safe and surrounded by women, and as I’ve gotten older, it’s only become more and more important for me to work with women.
"Often you’d be cast as the chick in the film, or there would be other women in the film, but we’d never have scenes together."
The ladies discussed the "tropes" in the film industry.
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The ladies discussed the "tropes" in the film industry, which Portman further explained at different points of her career, "there was a different one."
She added: "Obviously, there was a long Lolita phase, then there was the long 'chick who helps the guy realize his emotional thing' phase for about a decade. And now I feel like it’s 'mothers who have harmed children,' which is just like, I cannot emotionally go there.
"So yeah, there’s a lot of the same tropes, but those are always helpful for pinpointing when something really special comes through. It really stands out when you get something complex and beautiful and original."
