Portman: 'Being a sex symbol was hard'

Natalie Portman has revealed that she struggled with being seen as a sex symbol when she was growing up.

The actress was just 12 when she played an orphan taken in by a hitman in hit film Leon, but said her parents had stopped her going off the rails.

She told Reveal: "It's really, really hard to grow up being seen as sexy to people. The first movie that I ever did, Leon, was considered to be a very sexual film. So my parents really shielded me from the weirdos of the world.

"While I was growing up they were very protective - appropriately so. They were so concerned about me getting into acting because they had this impression - and I feel they're right - that there is a lot of stuff kids shouldn't be exposed to at such a young age."

Portman recently admitted that she can be a "scheming bitch" when it comes to her career.

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