Florence Pugh Shuts Down 'Weird' Rumors About Why She Shaved Her Head for“ We Live in Time” Role

In a new interview, the actress said the transformation was necessary in order to tell her character’s story to the fullest

Florence Pugh is opening up about the why she chose to shave her head for her new film, We Live in Time.

Speaking with Vanity Fair in an interview published on Thursday, Sept. 5, the actress, 28, explained why she decided to shave her head to immerse herself in her role as Almut, a chef who, at a point in the plot, is diagnosed with cancer and undergoes treatment.

Per the article, director John Crowley told Pugh that wigs and other hairpieces were options — but she was adamant about fully committing to her character's journey with a real-life transformation.

Related: Future Costars Florence Pugh and Andrew Garfield Smile Together in Rome — See the Photo

“I just stopped him mid-sentence and I was like, ‘John, no one can play a character like this in a movie like this and not do the thing that is needed to be done,’ " she said. “And if you don’t want to do it, I believe that you shouldn’t be doing a story like this.”

Pugh debuted her buzz cut at the 2023 Met Gala and her clean-shaven head, which she accessorized with a towering headpiece, was subject to commentary online.

“I think there was this weird rumor on the internet saying that I did it to take back my identity,” Pugh recalled reading, though she’d never claimed any statement of the sort in her “entire life.”

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Related: Florence Pugh Says She Shaved Her Head to Take 'Vanity Out of the Picture'

In July of that year, the Oppenheimer star told Radio Times (per the Daily Mail) that she “wanted vanity out of the picture" when it came to her haircut.

“Hollywood is very glamorous — especially for women — and it's hard for an audience to see past that,” Pugh said. “Whenever I've not needed to be glam or have a full face of makeup, I fight to keep it that way. It helps the audience."

“Even at the beginning of my career, I was always fighting to control my image,” she added. “It helps me when I'm wearing less makeup because then I'm less of a sparkly thing on screen. I feel like I'm allowed to do ugly faces, like it's more acceptable.”

We Live in Time, also starring Andrew Garfield, will premiere in theaters on Oct. 11.

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