15 Actresses Who Made Their Screen Debuts in Unforgettable Nude Scenes (16 Photos)

Making it as an actress in Hollywood is no easy feat. Women want to be taken seriously for their talent, but Tinseltown thrives on looks and glamour. So, actresses have to play the game. When a young rising star finally gets her big break on the silver screen, she's often willing to do whatever it takes to grab the audience's attention. If a role calls for an erotic or nude scene, stripping down is often the price of fame. For some, it becomes a trap, pigeonholing them into "bombshell" roles. But a select few manage to rise above it and achieve true superstardom.

Over the years, Hollywood has seen many actresses launch their careers through films where they stripped down for the camera. Some of these movies flopped, while others became critical hits. Some stars went on to bigger and better things, while others hit a plateau.

Here are 15 actresses who bared it all in their screen debuts yet still went on to build impressive, highly respectable careers.







Jaime Pressly admitted she wasn't sure if she had what it takes to be a good actress when she starred in her feature debut, 1997's

Poison Ivy: The New Seduction

. That's why turning down nude scenes didn't even cross her mind. But Pressly had nothing to be ashamed of—she owned the screen as a seductive temptress from start to finish.

For a while, Pressly was typecast as the token "hot blonde," but in 2007, she blew away critics and audiences alike with her hilarious turn as Joy Turner on

My Name Is Earl

, winning an Emmy for her performance. She went on to star in the CBS sitcom

Mom

. While she may not dominate headlines today, her debut proved that a girl with razor-sharp comedic timing and a drop-dead gorgeous physique belonged in Hollywood.





It's a shame Julie Warner never quite scaled the Hollywood heights hinted at early in her career, back when she effortlessly combined acting chops, sharp comedic timing, and a stunning physique. That's precisely how audiences first met her in the 1991 comedy

Doc Hollywood

, when Michael J. Fox's big-city doctor, stuck in a small town, goes for a swim at a lake to clear his head—and stumbles right into her.

Warner emerges from the lake completely nude—a sight that leaves Fox's character speechless. She casually steps out, puts on a dress, and walks off with a dry, "You can blink now." Her career might not have skyrocketed to A-list status, but that single scene ensured her debut stood out from the crowd.



Australian actress Portia de Rossi is well known for her roles in hit shows like

Ally McBeal

,

Arrested Development

, and

Scandal

, as well as her marriage to talk show host Ellen DeGeneres. Her movie debut came in 1994's

Sirens

, which drew buzz for two main reasons: it was one of Hugh Grant's early breakout films, and it marked the acting debut of supermodel Elle Macpherson.

While Macpherson stole most of the spotlight with her killer figure, de Rossi turned in a solid performance as one of two muses to a controversial artist who end up seducing a minister's wife. De Rossi was fearless about stripping down on camera, and it's fair to say she looked absolutely sensational.



Long before her high-profile relationship with Hugh Grant and her star-making turn in

Austin Powers

, former model Elizabeth Hurley made her screen debut in the 1987 British film

Aria

—a wild anthology blending history and avant-garde fantasy. Hurley appears for just five minutes as a mistress.

To put it mildly, the film is bizarre, pretentious, and largely boring, but a blonde Hurley livened things up considerably with her nude scene. In fact, she's probably the only reason to watch

Aria

at all. Not a bad starting point for an actress who eventually went on to play the Queen of England in

The Royals

.



The 1990 French fantasy film

1001 Nights

would have been entirely forgettable if not for one thing: it marked the screen debut of future Oscar winner Catherine Zeta-Jones. She starred as the iconic Scheherazade, who saves her own life by telling enchanting stories. The young Zeta-Jones was breathtaking, particularly in a memorable topless scene aboard a boat. It would take a few more years before

The Mask of Zorro

catapulted her to international superstardom, but she broke into Hollywood's elite and has stayed there ever since.



The living embodiment of sex appeal, Spanish superstar Penélope Cruz has long captivated audiences with roles that showcase her stunning physique—from

Vanilla Sky

to

Nine

and beyond. But it was in her feature debut, 1992's

Jamón Jamón

, that she first put her incredible talents on full display.

She plays a young pregnant woman whose happy relationship is threatened when her boyfriend's wealthy mother hires a handsome charmer to seduce her. The young actress delivered a powerhouse performance, highlighted by a beach scene where she bares it all and several steamy, tastefully shot love scenes. Remarkably, Cruz has only grown more stunning with age.



In just a few short years, Jessica Chastain racked up an enviable filmography, starring in blockbusters and critically acclaimed hits like

Interstellar

,

The Help

, and

Zero Dark Thirty

. Chastain was a powerhouse right out of the gate, as demonstrated by her film debut in 2008's

Jolene

.

She played a young orphan drifting across America, tumbling from one tough situation to another while doing whatever it took to survive. Chastain completely threw herself into the role, including several nude scenes. Those moments were captivating not just because of her stunning figure, but because of the emotional raw intensity she brought to the screen.



Marlee Matlin belongs to an exclusive club of actors who won an Academy Award for their debut film role while also going nude on screen. In

Children of a Lesser God

, she plays a deaf custodian at a school for the deaf who falls into a passionate romance with a new teacher (played by William Hurt).

The chemistry between the two was undeniable (they even dated in real life), and Matlin poured raw passion into her debut performance. She bared all without hesitation, both in a striking scene where her character strips down in front of Hurt's character and in a beautifully shot love scene. Winning the Oscar launched a stellar, long-lasting Hollywood career for Matlin.



Emily Blunt shot to international stardom with 2006's

The Devil Wears Prada

, but she first turned heads in the 2003 TV miniseries

Henry VIII

, playing Catherine Howard and appearing topless in a brief yet unforgettable scene. Her feature film debut, 2004's

My Summer of Love

, also featured a memorable nude scene that showcased her rising talent.



In 1981,

Body Heat

hit theaters, and Kathleen Turner blew audiences away as a seductive femme fatale who lures William Hurt's character into a deadly murder plot. Turner's smoldering screen presence and sultry, husky voice made her look like a seasoned star, but it was actually her feature film debut.

Her scorching love scenes with Hurt brought serious heat to the erotic thriller, helping make the movie a box-office success. It was a phenomenal launchpad for an actress adept at both comedy and drama, proving that a bold debut can set the stage for a legendary career.



Our introduction to Salma Hayek in 1995's

Desperado

is unforgettable: slow-motion footage of her running down the street, hair blowing in the wind. The Mexican starlet made her Hollywood debut in Robert Rodriguez's action hit as a bookstore owner who crosses paths with Antonio Banderas's character, captivating audiences instantly with her breathtaking beauty and sultry charm.

The chemistry culminated in a sizzling love scene with Banderas where Hayek went fully nude. The role launched her into overnight stardom, and she eventually proved to be much more than just a bombshell, carving out an impressive career as both an A-list actress and an accomplished producer.



In 1982, Phoebe Cates made her screen debut in not one, but two films featuring nude scenes. The first was

Paradise

, where she played a teenage girl stranded in the desert with a young man. Naturally, romance bloomed in an oasis, leading to several nude scenes, including a memorable waterfall moment.

Her second movie that year was the teen comedy classic

Fast Times at Ridgemont High

. The iconic scene where Cates emerges from the swimming pool and unclips her red bikini top became one of the most famous moments in cinema history—a pop culture touchstone that '80s teens never forgot. Though she eventually stepped away from Hollywood, her legendary debut remains etched in pop culture history.



When it comes to memorable nude debuts, few can match Natasha Henstridge. The then-unknown former model was cast as the lead in 1995's sci-fi thriller

Species

, where scientists combine alien DNA with human genetics to create a hybrid (whose younger form was played by a young Michelle Williams) that rapidly matures into an adult female.

Henstridge was perfectly cast as the lethal, drop-dead gorgeous alien Sil, appearing nude multiple times throughout the film as she adapts to human life, learns to wear clothes, and seduces unsuspecting men. Of course, her alien instincts soon kick in, turning her into a deadly predator—albeit a strikingly beautiful one. While Henstridge didn't become a massive movie star (despite memorable roles in hits like

The Whole Nine Yards

), she forged a steady, successful career on television.



South African-born former model Charlize Theron owes her big Hollywood break to a daring debut. In 1996, she made her film debut in

2 Days in the Valley

, a slick blend of dark comedy and crime thriller. She commanded attention from her very first scene—including an unforgettable catfight with Teri Hatcher's character—and showcased her incredible physique in a steamy romance scene with James Spader.

Theron went on to star in high-profile hits like

The Devil's Advocate

and

Reindeer Games

before winning an Academy Award for

Monster

. While she rarely strips down on camera these days, her fearless debut undoubtedly paved the way to superstardom.



Angelina Jolie is certainly no stranger to nude scenes on screen, having gone bare in early career highlights like

Hackers

and

Gia

. But long before those roles, Jolie made her starring feature debut in the 1993 sci-fi flick

Cyborg 2

. Yes, producers actually decided that the original

Cyborg

needed a sequel! The film itself was a bizarre mashup of cheesy '90s sci-fi and bad action, but Jolie brought enough magnetism to save her scenes, making her nude sequence the one truly memorable moment in the entire movie.