Brooke Shields recalls how she was sexualized as a child actor, slams Hollywood for 'eating its young'

Actress Brooke Shields blasted Hollywood for allowing her to be sexualized as a child actor and said the entertainment industry is "predicated on eating its young."

At just 11 years old, Shields made her cinematic debut in the movie "Alice, Sweet Alice." A year later, Shields starred as a child prostitute in the controversial film "Pretty Baby." Shields appeared nude in the movie and kissed 27-year-old actor Keith Carradine.

As a teen, Shields was cast in extremely sexualized roles for "Blue Lagoon" and "Endless Love."

Now, Brooke is speaking out about how she was sexualized by Hollywood when she was a child actor.

On Friday, Shields was joined by journalist Katie Couric, Meghan Markle, sociologist Nancy Wang Yuen, and journalist Errin Haines as keynote speakers at a SXSW panel titled: "Breaking Barriers, Shaping Narratives: How Women Lead On and Off the Screen."

"There was this sexualization of young women and I was at the center of it. I was promoting it," Shields said. "I was surrounded by a strong mom, had a community around me, I did not become the type of statistic that Hollywood created."

The 58-year-old actress said, "Hollywood is predicated on eating its young."

She also noted that Hollywood dismisses actresses over the age of 40.

"At 58 you're too old to be the ingénue but not quite the granny yet," Shields stated. "I find my reaction is to instead of getting angry, find and ferret out the filmmakers who appreciate a woman over 40 and appreciate the life experience."

She added, "My entire career has been built on beauty, as I've gotten older I want my message to be appreciative, but beauty as a wellness.... we're not just wrinkle cream. We need to change the narrative – and say that there is beauty in this age."

In her documentary "Pretty Baby," which was released last year, Shields talked to her daughters about being sexually exploited as a child.

Her 19-year-old daughter discussed Brooke posing naked for Playboy at age 10 and appearing nude in a movie at age 11, and exclaimed, "It's child pornography!"

Shields said in an interview, "That was hard for me, to not justify my mom to them, but when they asked me, I thought, 'Oh God, I have to admit this.'"

"I mean, I could say, 'Oh, it was the time back then,' or 'Oh, it was art,'" Shields explained. "But I don't know why she thought it was all right. I don't know."

As Blaze News previously reported, Shields revealed that she was raped by a Hollywood insider early in her acting career.

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