Jodie Comer has spoken about how she almost lost interest in acting as a teenager because she was so insecure about how she looked.
The Bafta-winning actress, 26, said she was “obsessed” with her weight while growing up in Liverpool and trying to break into drama.
Comer, who plays the assassin Villanelle in Killing Eve, said: “When I was in my late teens, I was so insecure about my body. I had a really unhealthy obsession with being thin.
“When I look back at the time, I really lost interest in my acting because I was so obsessed with how I looked. I don’t remember wanting to go to auditions or being passionate about doing it.
“It’s so hard when you’re a teen. We used to have [social media blogging site] Piczo and people would have pages of ‘rate the girl’ and they’d have a picture of one girl and a picture of the other and there would be a comment box and you’d have to pick which girl was the fittest. Isn’t that disgusting? It blows my mind.”
The highly anticipated second series of Killing Eve, which also stars Sandra Oh and is executive produced by Fleabag’s Phoebe Waller-Bridge, starts on BBC One on Saturday. Starring in the show has helped make Comer a household name and earned her the Bafta award for best actress.
The impact the character has had on her life is not lost on the actress. She told Glamour UK: “I don’t know if it’s through turning 26 or playing Villanelle but I feel like I’m more honest with myself and with my relationships ... I’m a lot clearer-minded and more likely to say how I feel and not feel. Villanelle just says what she thinks.” She said the main thing she has taken away from Killing Eve is “freedom”, explaining: “I know Villanelle is a bad person but there’s also something so free in her as she does what she wants to do and stands by it. Take away the killing people, just doing something and standing by it and not apologising for anything, that’s what I’ve learnt through these women.”
When asked about the representation of women on screen, she said: “Within everyday sexism, it’s hard — there’s the obvious things where you go into an audition room and it’s not very welcoming or you’re met with a certain attitude.
“I’ve just been really lucky with who I’ve been surrounded with ... even though the show is fronted by women, there are so many men behind it who champion it. It’s always important to not forget that.”
Read the full interview in the June digital issue of Glamour UK, out now: glamourmagazine.co.uk/magazine
