Claire Foy Says She 'Viscerally Hates' Defining Women in Film as 'Strong Female Characters'

Emma McIntyre/Getty Images Claire Foy

Claire Foy is over the concept of "strong female characters."

The 38-year-old actress's new film, Women Talking — which just hit theaters — follows a group of women in an isolated religious colony as they grapple with the gender-based power imbalances and abuse they experience in their community.

In a new interview with Empire, Foy, along with some of her Women Talking costars and director Sarah Polley, chatted about the film and its themes, and the Breathe star revealed her hatred for the notion of the "strong female character" in films.

RELATED: Rooney Mara, Claire Foy, Jessie Buckley Star in Powerful Trailer for Sarah Polley's 'Women Talking'

When asked what she thinks of the phrase, Foy responded, "I viscerally hate 'strong female characters.' It says what? All other female characters are weak?"

"You don't separate men like that," the First Man actress continued, "They're allowed to be unlikeable, likable, strong, weak, scary, cuddly… all sorts of different things."

Polley echoed Foy, adding, "We've been foils for so long in movies about men. I think a 'strong female character' is just a fully realized human being."

"It's just sad how long we've gone with very few of those in movies, where we're not a means to an end," the Women Talking director told Empire. "A 'strong female character' can take a million forms that don't just look like a stereotypical strong man and a female body."

Orion Pictures /Courtesy Everett Collection

RELATED: Claire Foy Says She 'Can't Help But Feel Exploited' After Filming Sex Scenes: 'It's Grim'

Foy, who is best known for portraying Queen Elizabeth II in the first two seasons of Netflix's The Crown, has previously spoken out about sexism in Hollywood, including how filming sex scenes makes her "feel exploited."

"It's a really hard line because basically you do feel exploited when you are a woman and you are having to perform fake sex on screen," the actress told BBC Radio 4. "You can't help but feel exploited," she said. "It's grim – it's the grimmest thing you can do."

In the same interview, she also condemned the practice of "slut-shaming," saying "I hate the phrase 'slut-shaming.' I absolutely hate it."

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"But I think that women have basically been slut-shamed forever," Foy continued. "I think Eve probably was slut-shamed."