Emma Roberts' desire for a golden glow left her looking like she had "rolled in mud" when she had a spray tan for a school prom.
Roberts admits other teenagers used to mock her pale skin, but her attempts to get a golden glow when she attended her friends prom ended in disaster.
She recalled: "I was that person who went with the boyfriend's friend.
"I had a really bad spray tan, because I used to get made fun of for being pale. I thought, 'I'm gonna get a spray tan and be really glamorous', but I looked like I rolled in mud.
"So, um, that was really fun."
The 'Palo Alto' actress was educated at home so admitted she didn't have a "regular" school experience.
Speaking to James Franco for V magazine, she said: "I was home schooled, which was definitely not like a regular high school experience."
Emma - whose aunt is Hollywood beauty Julia Roberts - recently admitted her parents didn't want her to pursue an acting career.
She said: "She [my mum] just didn't want me to go into it [acting] young. When you come from a family that's in the industry, they're always like, 'Be a doctor! Be a lawyer!' But we end up wanting to be actors."
When asked if she received any advice from Julia, she added: "No one said anything to me about acting because they hoped it would just be a phase. But I kept doing it!"
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