Emma Roberts Is Naked—in More Ways Than One—for American Eagle
Emma Roberts teased a photo from her #AerieREAL Fall 2015 campaign shoot on Instagram. @emmaroberts/Instagram
Naked celebrity photo shoots are nothing new in this day and age (Kim Kardashian, Chrissy Teigen, Madonna), but when they opt to do so without retouching…well, that’s an entirely new and refreshing story. Emma Roberts is doing just that, stripping down for American Eagle Outfitters’ award-winning #AerieREAL Fall 2015 campaign.
“I just loved the messaging behind it. I thought the whole idea was so inspiring,” Roberts, 24, told People magazine of the brand’s choice to feature photos of women sans digital manipulation. “Yes, I’m an actress, but I’m also a real girl. Seeing [Photoshopped] ads, you get kind of bummed. You’re like, ‘Ugh, do these people really look like that?‘”
The #AerieREAL campaign, which launched in 2014 and features unaltered images of “normal” woman of all sizes, aims to challenge the industry’s supermodel standards. And while the campaign has made plenty of traction—it won a “Seal of Approval” award from the National Eating Disorder foundation in March 2015—using a celebrity this time should create even more chatter. And rightfully so!
“I feel like whenever girls see the word ‘real,’ they automatically think ‘flaw,'” said Roberts. “I hope that with this campaign they start seeing ‘real’ as beautiful and just who you are, inside and out.”
Roberts may come off as a confident, young actress but her decision to get nearly naked wasn’t so easy. While she wasn’t self conscious about the usual suspects—acne, stretch marks, cellulite—her fair complexion made her a bit apprehensive. “I definitely have a complex about being pale because I’ve been made fun of my whole life, so I was nervous about that,” Roberts admitted. “When I was a kid, everyone would be like, ‘Your legs are so pale! I can’t believe you’re wearing a dress!’ And I would get so embarrassed.”
Roberts rocked her natural alabaster complexion for the shoot, but the actress is no stranger to faux tans. “I would get spray tans, and I look back at those photos now, and I just think: Oh my goodness, you’re orange. I would tell my younger self to stop spray-tanning so much. Just own it.”
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