Xuenou > Celebrity > Hilary Duff Being Praised For Her Nude Magazine Cover Has Sparked A Discussion Around The Reaction To Britney Spears’s Naked Instagram Pictures And What’s Considered “Liberating”
Hilary Duff Being Praised For Her Nude Magazine Cover Has Sparked A Discussion Around The Reaction To Britney Spears’s Naked Instagram Pictures And What’s Considered “Liberating”
Hilary’s groundbreaking cover has sparked a discussion around the scrutiny Britney receives for her naked photos, with several fans also noting that various celebrities — like Kim Kardashian — haven’t received the same concern for sharing nude selfies.

Hilary Duff broke the internet on Tuesday as she posed naked on the cover of Women’s Health Magazine.

Frederick M. Brown / Getty Images

Hilary, now 34, went on: “I’m proud of my body. I’m proud that it’s produced three children for me. I’ve gotten to a place of being peaceful with the changes my body has gone through. I also want people to know a makeup artist was there putting glow all over my body and someone put me in the most flattering position.”

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And posting about the nude cover on Instagram, Hilary wrote that she felt “strong and beautiful” during the shoot, despite having found it “scary.”

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“Sooooo, this was scary….. I knew doing this would terrify me and I was right! @womenshealthmag had the most lovely all-women shoot and I actually had the best time. I felt strong and beautiful and laughed a lot getting into some of these poses without my high waisted mom jeans and oversized whatever I normally wear,” she said.

Emma Mcintyre / Getty Images

Hilary’s nude magazine cover quickly received huge praise online, with the How I Met Your Father star trending across Twitter while tons of people — celebrities and otherwise — shared kind words of admiration.

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Amongst all the commentary, Hilary’s shoot was often described as “liberating” and “classy.” One person called it a “perfect example of how a childhood star can actually grow up to be a well-adjusted, loving, ‘normal,’ strong, and fantastic example of a working woman and human in entertainment and beyond.”

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Others hailed Hilary an “inspiration on many levels” as they commended her confidence throughout her journey toward embracing her body.

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Britney has posted minimally-censored photos of herself across Instagram for months. She previously explained that she was posting the topless and nude photos in a bid to reclaim her body after feeling constrained for 13 years under the terms of her conservatorship, which saw her life tightly controlled by her father and a group of lawyers from 2008 until November 2021.

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But Britney’s photos have attracted a negative response from several internet users, some of whom have called her “disturbing” and embarrassing.”

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In fact, the criticism that Britney received led her to defend her images earlier this year. “Alrightyyy then folks … showing my bod in French Polynesia as a rebel and free WOMAN !!!!! I WILL DO BIG LETTERS CAUSE I THINK THAT MEANS IT’S IMPORTANT AND I DON’T WANT TO BE LEFT OUT,” she wrote in a now-deleted Instagram caption.

Jamie Mccarthy / Getty Images

“People are so brainwashed by social media that they think nudity is wrong unless you’ve hired a photographer and glam team,” it added, referencing the fact that Britney’s photos are often of low-quality and appear to have been taken on a cell phone.

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Another simply questioned: “Hilary Duff posts a nude photoshoot and everyone praises her, Britney Spears posts her own nudes from her phone and she’s shamed. Can someone explain the difference?”

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And Britney was praised for partaking in professional shoots all but naked throughout her early 20s, notably appearing topless on the front page of the same magazine a few years later.

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Bringing this into view, one person wrote: “would they have a problem if it was on the cover of a magazine? you know… like she’s done so many times when she was younger? why is it “concerning” now that she’s just enjoying herself?”

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Elsewhere, several users noted that the concept of celebrities posing naked is nothing new. Listing a few examples, one Twitter user pointed out that Kim Kardashian, Kendall Jenner, and Christina Aguilera are just three famous faces who have done various nude photoshoots.

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And while these celebrities have certainly faced scrutiny for their photos, none have received an overwhelmingly negative response in the way that Britney does, much of which is framed around concern for her wellbeing.

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A direct side-by-side of one of Kim’s shoots and Britney’s posts was even reshared by Instagram page Hollywood Unlocked, with a user questioning the difference in public attitude toward both photos.

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On Twitter, another person compared the opposing reactions, writing: “When Kim Kardashian poses nude it’s ok? When Hilary Duff who posed nude for a cover shoot for a magazine it’s ok but when Britney Spears [does] the same thing you idiots say she’s nuts & needs help? Talk about double standards. Women should be able to do WHATEVER without judgement!”

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And given that these celebrities didn’t face such an onslaught of concern when posting their selfies, fans are now rallying behind Britney and her freedom to share photos in the same way — especially considering that she spent years sexualized in the industry, and that she’s defended her nude pictures time and again.

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More on this

  • Britney Spears Said Her Recent Topless Photos Are An Attempt To Free Herself From The Weight Of The Conservatorship After Fans Expressed Concern They’d Been Posted Without ConsentEllie Woodward · Aug. 17, 2021
  • Britney Spears Defended Her Nude Instagram Pictures And It’s Sparked A Conversation About Ageism And Policing Women’s Bodies After She Was Praised For Posing In Underwear At 17Leyla Mohammed · March 3, 2022
  • Kim Kardashian Just Shut Down Every Criticism Of Her Nude SelfiesEllie Woodward · June 7, 2016
  • Leyla Mohammed

    Leyla Mohammed a is Celebrity News Fellow for BuzzFeed UK and is based in London.

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