Vanessa Williams was "living in a bubble" before her naked photo scandal.
Vanessa Williams made history at the start of her career but then suffered a media scandal
The 61-year-old star made history as the first black woman to be crowned Miss America in 1984 and is these days known for her roles in 'Ugly Betty' and 'Desperate Housewives' but was "humiliated" when X-rated photos of herself were leaked in the early days of her career, especially as she thought that the US was "beyond racism" at that point.
She told Interview: "I was living in a bubble, thinking that we were beyond racism. I think the difference between 40 years ago and now is that the news cycle’s really sped up. People are quick to judge, quick to cancel, but it doesn’t remain in the zeitgeist for too long. Back in the day, you only had three major channels.
"I’d made history [as the first black woman to win Miss America], so 10 months later, to have a scandal, it was a worldwide phenomenon. It was devastating. It was humiliating."
The 'Hannah Montana: The Movie' star remains extremely grateful that she had the support of her family throughout the ordeal because it took her "years to regain respectability" following the scandal.
She said: "Thank God I had a community and family that supported me and believed in my talent, because it took me years to regain respectability and to be seen for the person that I was. I’ve had to go through many hoops over and over again, and I still feel that.
"I’m always on the list of most underrated this, most underrated that. Well, guess what? That gives me my fuel."
Meanwhile, Vanessa will be starring as Miranda Priestly - a role said to be inspired by Vogue editor Anna Wintour and made famous on screen by Meryl Streep - in the upcoming musical version of 'The Devil Wears Prada' in London's West End from October and explained that everything has got to be "bigger" than what she is used to with it being on stage.
She said: "Well, for a stage it’s got to read in the back of the house, so I don’t have the luxury to do one eyebrow and have everybody understand what I’m trying to convey. It’s got to be bigger. Television and film, the lens is right here, so you can do all the subtle whispers and sighs and use your eyes in a much more diminutive way. And also you have the luxury onstage to burst into song, to help elevate and continue whatever emotion you just started. In television and film, you’re not in charge of your performance. It’s up to the editor."
Tagged in Vanessa Williams Meryl Streep Anna Wintour