Skins star April Pearson was once fired "on the spot" for refusing to do nude scene

24 August 2021, 20:39

Skins' April Pearson says she felt "uncomfortable" during Michelle's nude scenes

By Katie Louise Smith

The actress opened up about the shocking situation on TikTok, but did not reveal which film she was fired from.

Actor April Pearson, who is best known for playing Michelle Richardson in Skins, has opened up about the time she was once fired "on the spot" by a director because she refused to film a scene in the nude.

April, now 32, took to TikTok in collaboration with Amazon Prime Video to recount the time she was fired from an unspecified feature film, during a sex scene.

In the video, April says she was replaced by another actress there and then, after saying she would not remove her bra for a scene. She also calls out the problem with female bodies on screen in the film and TV industry,

READ MORE: Skins' April Pearson says she felt "uncomfortable" during Michelle's nude scenes

Speaking directly to camera, April opened up about her experience to her followers on TikTok.

"I've never talked publicly about this," April says, "but I was once fired on the spot during a sex scene from a feature film because I wouldn't renege on my nudity clause, which was that I wouldn't get my breasts out, for the scene. And the director decided that the scene needed that level of nudity."

She continues: "It's a funny one because I, to this day, think 'Did I do the right thing? Would my career be better off now?' But I think it's interesting because they didn't shut production down, they just gave my part to a supporting artist who was there on the day, who was happy to be completely nude for the scene."

April then pressed that the whole situation raises a very important issue with the TV and film industry: "And I think that's a real problem that we have in the industry - that that scene was more about a female body than it was about a female character."

In the caption, April thanks Amazon Prime Video for "promoting conversations like these. I am confident that change is happening."

It's not the first time April has opened up about her experiences filming nude scenes either.

Back in February, April took to TikTok to answer questions from fans. April was asked if the actors ever had to get naked on Skins and if it made her uncomfortable. She responded: "Yes and yes. It was very weird…and not all the time pleasant. Still dealing with it."

It's unclear what feature film or which director April was referring to in her TikTok video. Recently, more film productions are hiring Intimacy Coordinators to ensure that actors are comfortable and safe when filming nude or sex scenes.

Netflix's Sex Education was praised for being one of first productions to make sure an intimacy coordinator was on set to protect the younger actors in the more intimate scenes.