Jennifer Lawrence’s nude scene shouldn’t be the most interesting part of No Hard Feelings

After a drought of good rom-coms since arguably the early 2000s, hype was real for Jennifer Lawrence’s long-anticipated romantic comedy, No Hard Feelings, when it finally hit Netflix last year. To have an Oscar-winning actress lean into her hilarious demeanour and play Maddie: a woman attempting to seduce a 19-year-old to save her family home through a seriously suss Craigslist job advert posted by his wealthy parents before he’s shipped off to Princeton was a joy. Jennifer was nominated for a Golden Globe as a result.

Except, nobody is talking about No Hard Feelings’ plot, performances, or effortlessly smart script— because, all anybody can focus on is Jennifer’s body. Specifically, every full-frontal nude scene inch of it. Consistently, “Jennifer Lawrence” nude scene has been a trending Google search every time the film is mentioned during Awards Season. “Jennifer Lawrence stuns fans with FULL-FRONTAL naked scene in X-Rated comedy,” screamed tabloid headlines at the time.

What’s almost worse than the nudity obsession, though, is the way Jennifer is being shamed for it. “To be 100 per cent clear: I am a HUGE fan of J-Law — hell, one of the only JOY defenders out there — but her decision to run around buck naked on a beach suplexing teenagers in #NoHardFeelings is monumentally baffling,” wrote one Twitter user. “You won an OSCAR girl, what the hell made you say ‘yes’ to that?” 

Alongside Andrew Feldman, Jennifer Lawrence is outstanding in  No Hard Feelings. She shines like the undeniable superstar that she is. To belittle that because she takes her clothes off and fights a group of teenagers on the beach – one of many moments of pristine physical comedy sprinkled throughout her performance – is boring and regressive. She’s no less of an Oscar-winner because she got naked and did comedy. To insinuate otherwise is snobby and boring. And if that’s the only thing you can take away from this film’s smart script and incredible character chemistry, then tbh that’s on you.

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Featured image credit via Netflix