Melanie Lynskey Is 'Tired' of Hearing About Her Body

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Actress Melanie Lynskey has been working in the entertainment industry since she was 15, and she's been dealing with people — both strangers and those she works with — having an opinion about her body for just as long. Most recently, Lynskey has faced scrutiny over her appearance while playing Shauna Sheridan on the Showtime series Yellowjackets, which she opened up about in a new interview with InStyle, featuring a conversation between Lynskey and Danielle Brooks. Related: Danielle Brooks Talks Snap-Back Culture, Trampoline Workouts, and Keeping It Real

A Yellowjackets crew member suggested the 45-year-old lose weight for the role, which required Lynskey to film a number of intimate scenes, she revealed to InStyle. She declined and has since received both criticism and applause for the way her body appears on screen in the show. "Sometimes, I get tired of hearing about my body, even when it is positive. I just, you know, feel like I need a break from thinking about it and hearing about it and I think all women feel that way," she said.

While chatting with Brooks, Lynskey continued to comment on the concept of dealing with body-image issues while working in the entertainment industry, especially when shooting revealing scenes. "It's such a struggle, always. I feel like I have two voices in my head," she explained, adding that one tells her she's "perfectly fine" while another is more negative. "I think there's this weird shaming of anybody who's not, like, a size two, and I'm just over it," she said. Related: Melanie Lynskey Got Real About Her 'Long Journey' to Body Acceptance

Although filming sex scenes makes Lynskey feel "vulnerable," she does it in part because of her desire to normalize seeing someone who's not a size two in a sexual role on screen, she explained to Brooks. Lynskey also noted that "it's funny" how some people bring up the fact that she's had a baby when discussing her body, almost as an excuse for why she might look a certain way. "It shouldn't just be like, 'Well, now, you're a mother, so your body's allowed to not be so tiny.' Our bodies should be whatever our bodies naturally are."

To Lynskey, it's clear that your body type doesn't define what you're capable of on or off camera. "...It's possible for women of all body types to do all kinds of things. It's possible for a woman of my body type to have two men find her attractive," she told Brooks. "All bodies are beautiful and I just really would love to get to the point where we can have all different kinds of bodies and it's just not commented on in the way that it is right now," concluded Lynskey.

While society may not have evolved past discussing celebrities' bodies just yet, it's always refreshing to hear actresses speak positively about embracing their appearances just as they are, and encouraging others to do the same. (Next up: Chloe Bailey Used to Be 'Ashamed' of Her Curves — Now Her 'Favorite' Part of Her Body Is Her Butt)