Fans and fellow celebrities are praising Florence Pugh for speaking out and defending herself from “vulgar” body-shamers after she faced criticism over her choice to wear a transparent pink Valentino gown.
For Valentino’s haute couture show in Rome on Friday, the 26-year-old Lady Macbeth star opted for a neon pink sheer tulle dress. She later uploaded photos of herself in the gown to Instagram, where she captioned the post: “Technically they’re covered?” in what appeared to be a reference to her visible nipples.
The dress prompted a wave of backlash on social media, prompting Pugh to address the negative responses she received in a follow-up post on Sunday. In that post, she said it’s been “interesting to watch and witness just how easy it is for men to totally destroy a woman’s body, publicly, proudly, for everyone to see”.
The actor went on to acknowledge that it wasn’t the first time, nor would it be the last time, that a woman “will hear what’s wrong with her body by a crowd of strangers,” before noting that “what’s worrying is just how vulgar some of you men can be”.
“So many of you wanted to aggressively let me know how disappointed you were by my ‘tiny tits’, or how I should be embarrassed by being so ‘flat chested,’” she wrote. “I’ve lived in my body for a long time. I’m fully aware of my breast size and am not scared of it. What’s more concerning is… Why are you so scared of breasts? Small? Large? Left? Right? Only one? Maybe none? What. Is. So. Terrifying.”
Pugh then spoke of her own upbringing, in which she said she was “raised to find power in the creases of our body,” before encouraging those who were critical of her outfit to “grow up. Respect people. Respect bodies. Respect all women. Respect humans”.
The Little Women star’s response has since received an outpouring of supportive comments on social media, where fans across multiple platforms have applauded Pugh for her handling of the criticism.
“EXACTLY FLORENCE PUGH,” one person tweeted alongside a screenshot of the actor’s Instagram response.
Another said: “Florence Pugh’s latest post about her Valentino look and ‘free the nipple’ is everything. I love her so much.”
“I can only hope to raise my daughter to be half as bold and brave as this woman. @Florence_Pugh #freethenippple,” someone else wrote on Twitter.
The appreciation for Pugh’s response continued in the comments under her post, where fans also thanked her for speaking out.
“I’ve never seen a braver and more well thought out response to the kind of cowardice that somehow compelled us men to be such idiots,” one person wrote, while another said: “You are a gem! Thank you for using your platform.”
Pugh’s response also earned praise from a number of fellow celebrities, including Jameela Jamil, Joey King, Stephanie Shepherd, Aubrey Plaza and Regé-Jean Page.
“You’re a magical f**king queen and we do not deserve you,” Jamil wrote under Pugh’s Instagram post, while King commented: “You are truly so amazing. You put into words what so many feel but can’t articulate.”
“Thank you for saying this,” Shepherd said, while Plaza added: “Okay this is what I have been sayinggg.”
Page also took the opportunity to publicly defend Pugh and call out misogyny on his Instagram Stories, where he reposted the Midsommar star’s post and wrote: “‘What. Is. So. Terrifying?’ Read the caption. Take a look at yourself fellas. Then take a look at your mates and step up when it’s time to step up.
“When the boys are out of line, have a word. The weird thing about misogyny is men actually listen to other men, so do your bit, [because] the next few years in particular are gonna be a really good time to listen, and take some responsibility, for everyone’s sake.”
