Sophia Loren: Women are people, not objects

23 October 2020

Sophia Loren has insisted women are “people, not objects”.

Sophia Loren

The iconic 86-year-old actress - who hails from Italy - has said she hates the way she was treated as a “hot pants” during her Hollywood heyday, because she believes women should be seen as “people”, rather than just “bombshells”.

She said: “I don't like it. No. No. I am a person, not a hot pants. I don't like to joke about such a thing. Yes, I agree with the #MeToo movement that we are people, not objects.”

Sophia has long fought for respect as a celebrity, and once slammed artist Andy Warhol when he called her a “sexpot”, insisting: “I am not a sexy pot! I am a serious actress.”

And speaking now about the conversation, she explained: “Really?! Did I say that?! I wanted to be sure they knew I could act, too. With my English then - and also today! - sometimes I say the wrong things at the wrong time.”

The ‘Life Ahead’ star also heaped praise on her former female co-stars, including Dame Judi Dench and Meryl Streep, saying she “admires” the women for their strong personalities and acting abilities.

She said: “I love Meryl Streep, of course. She’s the actress I most admire on the screen today.”

And when asked if she managed to be “wicked” with Judi Dench when they worked together on the musical, ‘Nine’, she added: “No, because the director was not a funny director. We had so much to do that we had no time to joke. That's sad, but true.”

Whilst Sophia fought hard to be taken seriously in Hollywood, she also had kind words to say about many of her male co-stars.

She said: “The men that I worked with in America, they're not with us any more. I loved Peter Sellers and the rest. And to work with them, one by one, was a big thing.”

The ‘Two Women’ star said leading men today “do the best they can”, but hailed Daniel Day-Lewis as “the one”.

Speaking to Baz Bamigboye for his column in the Daily Mail newspaper, she said: “He's wonderful. Wonderful!”