Natalie Portman has come out to share her experiences of being a child actor in Hollywood. According to her, it was anything but safe. 

“I understood very quickly, even as a 13-year-old, that if I were to express myself sexually, I would feel unsafe and that men would feel entitled to discuss and objectify my body to my great discomfort,” Natalie told People. “I felt the need to cover my body and to inhibit my expression and my work in order to send my own message to the world that I’m someone worth of safety and respect.”

The actress also revealed that the first piece of fan mail she ever received was when she was 13, describing it as a “rape fantasy” written and sent to her by a man.

“I know I was sexualized in the ways that I was photographed or portrayed, and that was not my doing,” she added. “That becomes a part of your public identity.”