'Like facing a firing squad': Brooke Shields on the 'overwhelming' reality of being famous as a child

Brooke Shields has opened up about the "overwhelming' and isolating reality of growing up famous.

In a new interview with AARP, the model, 58, likened the experience of going out in public at such a young age – being as famous as she was – to "facing a firing squad."

"It only became clear to me how famous I was when we went out," she told the outlet.

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"If we went to Studio 54 or the Cannes Film Festival, there would be hordes of people and paparazzi screaming my name and sometimes rocking the car, and I'm like, 'This is nuts. It was like facing a firing squad'."

Shields began modelling when she was around 11 months old, and by the time she was 12 she had starred in her controversial breakthrough 1977 film, Pretty Baby, in which she played a child prostitute.

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As a teenager in the '80s, Shields went on to land highly sexualised modelling gigs and leading roles in The Blue Lagoon, Sahara, and Wanda Nevada.

At just 14, she became the youngest model ever on the cover of Vogue.

Explaining how she dealt with the spotlight at a young age, Shields explains she was "thoughtful" and relied on compartmentalising Hollywood with her normal life.

"I was a thoughtful kid – I really did see things deeper. And I didn't want to lose my cool on camera during interviews, because then they win," she told AARP.

"I'm also a champion compartmentaliser; it was the only way to stay buoyant.

"Whenever a director would say 'Cut', I'd go separate, compartmentalise and often just leave – go to my regular school, or to my dad's, and be in a completely different world."

The actress previously opened up in 2019 about her body insecurities after feeling sexualised from a young age.

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While appearing on the online program Build Series, Shields said the emphasis on her face growing up meant it took her a long time to feel comfortable in her body.

In 2023, the now 58-year-old released a documentary titled Pretty Baby – a reference to her breakout movie role – which delved into everything from her complicated relationship with her mother Terri, who raised her as a single parent, to her friends being concerned over her childhood fame.