Angelina Jolie Was Nervous About Filming Nude Scenes in 'By the Sea'

Jolie Pitt, 40, who wrote and directed the '70s marital drama, said she never intended to play the leading role, so once she decided to act opposite her husband Brad Pitt, she began rethinking some of the nude scenes.

"There were lots of scenes I wanted to change or cut," she told The New York Times. "I realised it was going to be me [naked] in that bathtub."

But the actress realised that she couldn't let her own physical and mental insecurities hold her back.

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"I told myself, put all of that aside. Like, you can't change or cut this scene because you've had a mastectomy, or because we're married and people are going to analyse this or that," she said. "That would be cheating."

Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt attend the New York screening of 'By the Sea' on Nov. 3. Photo: Getty

After learning she carried the BRCA1 gene that increases the risk of cancer, Jolie Pitt decided to undergo two preventive surgeries, a double mastectomy in 2013 and the removal of her ovaries and fallopian tubes two years later.

And while Jolie Pitt eventually came to terms with having to bare it all on set, she made sure to keep her oldest son, Maddox – who worked as a gofer on the film – away from the more sexual or darker scenes.

"He'd be there for the lighter scenes or funnier ones, but obviously we had a rule that for certain scenes he was on lockdown, not on set," she explained.

But of course, they couldn't avoid at least one accidental run-in.

"I remember one day I was in my robe, my mascara was running down my face, my hair was still in curlers, and we ran into each other in the hallway," she said. "He just shook his head, like, 'Wow, Mum. Nice.' This business, I grew up in it myself, so I'd almost be happier if the kids weren't interested. But he loved it."

By the Sea hits cinemas Nov. 13.

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Jodi Guglielmi writes for People.com