Gone Girl Actress Defends Female Sexuality & “Blurred Lines” Role

Though Emily Ratajkowski's recently starred as Ben Affleck's mistress in Gone Girl, the model-turned-actress is perhaps best known for her controversial role in Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines" music video. In it, a mostly nude Ratajkowski danced around Thicke and co.; some people felt it was sexist, stating that by participating in it, Ratajkowski objectified herself and wasn't doing womankind any favors. Of course, women are constantly forced to explain themselves when they choose to embrace their sexuality. Ratajkowski spoke quite eloquently to this idea in an interview with The Daily Mail, saying "I think sexuality should be empowering to women. It's not always misogynistic or exploitative." While the lyrics of "Blurred Lines" may be interpreted as sexist, Ratajkowski saw her role in the music video as a way to subvert them. "I had initially turned it down," she told the Daily Mail. "I was eventually convinced by the director, who I really liked, to do it. It was kind of a good opportunity for me in a way because I couldn't really speak to the lyrics as I didn't write them, but I could about the video. I had all kind of ideas to say, so it ended up being a good platform, because on the other side I think people were like 'well let's hear what the girls think.'" The video gave her an opportunity to address the inherent double standard about the way men and women are allowed to be sexual beings. Going forward, though, Ratajkowski said she is being picky about the roles she takes. "I'm definitely being really selective, especially coming from a modeling background and having an opportunity like Gone Girl where people are taking me seriously. I have David [Fincher] in my corner," she told the paper. "I want to establish myself as someone who can act and doesn't have to rely on my figure or modeling background." Most distressing about Ratajkowski's predicament is that women are perhaps her worst critics. As Cheryl Strayed, author of Wild, told The Guardian, “The main power we grant young women in our culture is the power of their beauty and sexual appeal to men. And we also punish them for cashing in on it and admitting to it.”