At the Cannes Film Festival, actress Rachel Weisz discussed her role in the movie “Agora” and her decision to do all of her own nud* scenes.

Weisz plays the role of Hypatia, a 4th century Greek philosopher, mathematician, and astronomer.

The film touches on the theme of religious persecution and how women were treated during that time period.

Weisz noted that the movie also has connections to how women are treated in certain Middle Eastern countries today.

In the film, Weisz appears nked in two scenes, including one where she emerges from a bath while being attended to by a slave, played by Max Minghella.

When asked about the possibility of using a body double for these scenes, Weisz stated, “Absolutely not. It was all me, never even thought of using a double.”

The actress went on to explain that she was conscious of her figure and had done some yoga and avoided junk food to prepare for the role.

Weisz recalled questioning director Alejandro Amenabar about why her character was not kissed in the film, saying, “I thought she’d get at least one.”

However, after reflecting on the life of her own aunt, a professor of endocrinology and cancer research, Weisz gained a better understanding of her character’s motivations.

She explained, “My character doesn’t want to give up her work to be with a man and my aunt explained that when she graduated from college. She said, ‘I never believed a man who said he would allow me to work as hard as I wanted to’, and that was inspiration from my father’s older sister.”

On the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival, several other celebrities were also in attendance. Dutch model Doutzen Kroes and actress Evangeline Lilly represented L’Oreal at the screening of “Vengeance”.

Former Bond girl Michelle Yeoh looked stunning in a floor-length gown, and Italian actress and xXx star Asia Argento wore a beautiful blue tiered dress.

The 38-year-old Oscar winner explained that she was happy to appear nked in the movie and never considered using a body double.

When asked about her preparations for the role, Weisz mentioned that she did some yoga and avoided junk food.

She also mentioned that she was aware of any possible “baby fat” but felt that most of it had disappeared by the time she filmed the nude scenes.

Weisz’s character in “Agora”, Hypatia, is known for being a Greek philosopher, mathematician, and astronomer who lived from c370-415.

She spent her life surrounded by male students and slaves, and it is said that she famously never had sex and died a virgin.

In the film, Max Minghella plays Hypatia’s devoted slave, while Oscar Isaac plays one of her students. The relationships between these three characters create a love triangle of sorts.

The movie “Agora” deals with the theme of religious persecution and how Christian zealots treated women during that time period.

Weisz stated that the film also has parallels to how women are treated in some Middle Eastern countries today.

She said, “Women are still treated as second class citizens, they are denied education in Afghanistan. There are many countries where women are treated badly.”

The actress added that making the movie helped her to examine her own views on gender equality.

On the red carpet at the Cannes Film Festival, Weisz was seen wearing a daring green Valentino gown that was split to the thigh.

Earlier in the day, she wore an olive green Christian Dior shift dress for a photocall.

Other celebrities in attendance included Dutch model Doutzen Kroes and actress Evangeline Lilly, who represented L’Oreal at the screening of “Vengeance”.

Michelle Yeoh looked stunning in a floor-length gown, and Italian actress and xXx star Asia Argento wore a gorgeous blue tiered dress.