Mckenna Grace has pushed back against headlines linking her refusal to do nude scenes to her Disney princess ambitions.
The 20-year-old actress, who is set to appear in the upcoming “Hunger Games” prequel “Sunrise on the Reaping,” took to Instagram on Tuesday to set the record straight. “The two quotes being used right now in these titles are unrelated,” Grace wrote on the platform.
Grace’s clarification came after a Cosmopolitan interview in which she discussed the boundaries she has drawn in her career. “At this point, I definitely don’t do nudity or very hypersexual things,” she said when asked whether there were any roles she would turn down.
“I respect anybody who can, but it’s terrifying to me. I don’t know if that’ll ever change,” she added.
The actress, who began acting as a child, has built an extensive resume that includes the “Ghostbusters” films, “Scream 7” and Hulu’s “The Handmaid’s Tale,” the latter earning her an Emmy nomination. She emphasized that steering clear of explicit material does not mean limiting herself to entirely wholesome projects.
“It’s not like I only do wholesome things — my character literally gets gutted by Ghostface in ‘Scream’ but my dream is to try and be a Disney princess someday,” Grace said in the interview.
On Instagram, she elaborated that her stance stems from personal comfort rather than any corporate aspiration. “I’m not uncomfortable doing nude scenes/hypersexual roles simply because ‘I want to be a Disney princess,’ it’s just because of my own personal comfortability I have with that sort of thing right now at this point in my life!” Grace wrote.
Grace joins a growing number of performers who have publicly established boundaries around intimate scenes. “You” star Penn Badgley discussed his request to reduce intimate scenes on his “Podcrushed” podcast in 2023, citing his marriage as a factor. Veteran actor Neal McDonough has also spoken about his longstanding refusal to participate in sex scenes or kiss other actresses on screen, pointing to his Catholic faith and respect for his wife.
Entertainment critic Christian Toto suggested Grace’s early work may have shaped her perspective. “Mckenna got her showbiz start on family-friendly shows like ‘Crash & Bernstein.’ Perhaps some of those lessons have stuck,” Toto, host of “The Hollywood in Toto Podcast,” shared.
“Or, she’s seen former child stars go the hyper-sexual route and wants no part of it. Either way, her instincts here are solid, and she may just carve a healthy lane for her Hollywood career moving forward,” he added.
Actress Amy Adams previously recalled a similar calculation after portraying Giselle in Disney’s 2007 film “Enchanted.” Speaking on “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” Adams said she declined a graphic “Saturday Night Live” musical sketch proposed by Andy Samberg because she was mindful of the film’s young audience.
“I was so keenly aware of all the young girls that were watching ‘Enchanted,'” Adams said. “And I didn’t want to be the princess singing about that particular act, you know?”
Meanwhile, Angel Studios has announced “The Angel Promise,” a set of content standards that the Utah-based studio says will prohibit on-screen sex, nudity and gratuitous profanity in its original releases. Co-founder and chief content officer Jeff Harmon argued in an exclusive interview that Hollywood has increasingly moved away from the values of family audiences.
“I think Hollywood generally kind of lives in a bubble,” Harmon said. “These are excellent craftsmen. They’re the best storytellers in the world. Hollywood has built the best storytelling infrastructure in the world.”
“But at the same time, they’ve kind of drifted more and more away from the values-based audience that they used to serve,” he continued.
Harmon said the studio’s pledge guarantees families will never have to worry about encountering graphic material, reflecting what he described as an audience-first model.
Grace’s upcoming role in “The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping” is scheduled for release November 21.