Rival star Emily Atack hits back at 'sexually aggressive' trolls

Rivals star Emily Atack has hit back against “sexually aggressive” trolls.

Adapted from Dame Jilly Cooper’s best-selling novel, the series is set in the social elite of the 1980s, focusing on the rivalry between Lord Tony Baddingham (David Tennant) and MP Rupert Campbell Black (Alex Hassel).

Atack plays Sarah Strattonwho tried to leverage a position as a TV presenter by flaunting her marriage to the Deputy Prime Minister, Paul Stratton (Rufus Jones).

In one memorable scene, Sarah played a game of nude tennis with Campbell-Black on the lawn of an estate.

Emily Atack, Oliver Chris, rivals — Disney+

In an interview with The timesAtack revealed that she has received a lot of backlash for appearing in the scene, with trolls taking screenshots of images as if they were leaked footage from the set.

“I knew something like this would happen, just not so quickly,” she said. “I’m working, I’m playing a role, that scene is an integral part of the book. I’m exactly where I need to be.

“I can’t control people’s sexually aggressive behavior, but I can continue my campaign and fight for women’s freedom. I should be able to do a scene like this without getting negative attention. The two shouldn’t go hand in hand.” go hand.”

official teaser trailer from rivals — Disney+

Atack continued, “A woman recently said to me on Instagram, ‘Pick a job. You can’t play such a racy role and take off your clothes and expect not to get messages. Why would you take that role?’

“And I wanted to say to her, ‘Are you saying I should actually quit my job?’ Why should I? Women need to change their clothes, we need to change our routes home. I’m a professional, I’ll never please everyone.’

Speak with Digital spy about the nude scenethe actor previously explained that she was more concerned about learning to play tennis than appearing naked on screen.

“It wasn’t, ‘I have to run around a tennis court really grim.’ But I like a big entrance. I was like, ‘Yeah, bring it on,'” she said.

David Tennant as Tony Baddingham, rivals — Robert Viglasky – Disney+

“We keep saying that the nudity and sex scenes are a big part of this, but there’s always a reason for it. We don’t just take our gear off for no reason. They’re very essential to the storylines and characters.”

Rivals are also present Poldarkby Aidan Turner, Sex education‘s Bella Maclean, Our girlby Luke Pasqualino, Once upon a time‘s Victoria Smurfit and EastEnders star Danny Dyer.

BAFTA-nominated filmmaker Elliot Hegarty, known for his work on Ted Lasso and Trying, is the lead director.

Since landing on Disney+ last month, the show received widespread acclaim from fans and critics, earning a 94% rating Rotten Tomatoes from 33 reviews.

Rivals is available to stream Disney+.

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