Nicola Coughlan shuts down body positive label: ‘It's not mine'

Nicola Coughlan has a message for fans and commentators alike: she’d rather you talk about her acting than her body.

The 39-year-old star of Bridgerton and Derry Girls says she’s never signed up to be the face of body positivity – and frankly, she’s not interested in the role.

In a candid chat with Elle UK, Coughlan admitted, “The thing I say sometimes that pisses people off is I have no interest in body positivity.”

She explained that growing up, she never watched actors while thinking about their body shapes – and wishes audiences would do the same today.

“There’s a lot of things I’m passionate about, it’s not one of them… That’s someone else’s thing. It’s not mine.”

The conversation comes after a wave of attention surrounding her nude scenes in the latest season of Bridgerton. Ironically, Coughlan say she had actually lost weight while filming.

“You know what was really bizarre was, when I was shooting that series, I was exercising a lot because I knew I had to, so I had lost a bunch of weight – I was probably a size 10 and one of the corsets was a size 8.”

Yet people still labeled her “plus-size,” leaving the actress baffled.

“How f*cked are we that I am the biggest woman you want to see on screen?”

The attention hasn’t always been flattering either. She recalled an awkward fan encounter that left her cringing.

“I loved [Bridgerton] because of your body,” a stranger once told her in a bathroom, prompting Coughlan to think, “I want to die. I hate this so much…”

For the actor, the frustration is simple: months of work reduced to body talk.

“It’s so f***ing boring.”

Now, she’s focused on what matters – good roles and real performances.