Alison Brie Says Her Nude Scenes in “GLOW” Were Empowering for This Important Reason

Alison Brie got in knockout shape to get in the ring as an amateur wrestler on Netflix’s GLOW. She’s said in the past that building so much muscle made her feel like a badass, and now she’s revealed that getting nude for some of her scenes was empowering too — in a way she didn’t expect.

“Very early on in auditioning it was a case of, ‘Don’t come to any more auditions unless you’re comfortable with nudity, because it is a part of the show,'” she recently told Net-a-Porter’s weekly digital magazine The Edit.

Brie’s character appeared nude in both sex scenes and in locker-room changing scenes. While she initially didn’t even consider the nudity, she realized later that the way it was handled was an important portrayal.

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“At that time, I just wanted to be on the show so much that I really didn’t care,” she said. “It was important that the show be a realistic portrayal of life in the way people live and the way they have sex. And also that our show be about every aspect of women’s bodies, and women not being ashamed of their bodies. We’re not being shot in a way that’s over-sexualizing us, or exploiting us. I found it very freeing and empowering, and I’m so glad that I did it.”

Brie, who largely cut out cardio in favor of squats, 165lb deadlifts, and pull-ups to get in shape for the show, also said that while looking great wasn’t a bad by-product, it was about much more than that for her. “It was more about learning to use our bodies in this totally different way,” she said. “It really changed the way I felt about my body. It felt so empowering and exciting, and it proved that we were capable of so much more than we expected.”

She added: “GLOW is such a body-positive show; all of the women on it feel really comfortable in their bodies, and that is such a healthy thing to be surrounded by.” There’s plenty more of that positivity to come too — GLOW has been renewed for season two at Netflix.

How do you feel empowered? Let us know @BritandCo!

(Photos via Erica Parise/Netflix)