Kate Winslet recalls 'straight-up cruel' criticism of her weight: 'It was critical and horrible'

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Kate Winslet is looking back on past media coverage.

The 45-year-old actress, who has received acclaim and awards buzz for her performance in "Ammonite," recently took a stroll down memory lane to discuss how her weight was critiqued when she was just a budding star.

"In my 20s, people would talk about my weight a lot. And I would be called to comment on my physical self," she recalled to the Guardian. "Well, then I got this label of being ballsy and outspoken. No, I was just defending myself."

The "Titanic" star said she recently came across articles written about her when she was just 19.

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Kate Winslet called criticism of her weight 'straight-up cruel.' (Photo by Dan MacMedan/WireImage)

"It was almost laughable how shocking, how critical, how straight-up cruel tabloid journalists were to me," Winslet said. "I was still figuring out who the hell I bloody well was! They would comment on my size, they’d estimate what I weighed, they’d print the supposed diet I was on. It was critical and horrible and so upsetting to read."

Despite the criticism back in the day, the Oscar-winner said that looking back at the past coverage made her feel "moved" because today's standards are "different" than they were back then.

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Regardless of how she feels today, the star admitted that such commentary was tough to bear.

"It damaged my confidence. I didn’t want to go to Hollywood because I remember thinking, ‘God, if this is what they’re saying to me in England, then what will happen when I get there?’" she reminisced. "Also, it tampers with your evolving impression of what’s beautiful, you know? I did feel very on my own. For the simple reason that nothing can really prepare you for... that."

Kate Winslet said that some of her insecurities 'evaporated' after she had her first child. (Photo by Mike Windle/Getty Images)

Winslet explained that when she gave birth to her daughter Mia at just 25, her thoughts about body image "evaporated."

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"Do you remember that period in history when suddenly female tennis players became extraordinarily vocal and much more muscular than we’d ever seen them before? Well, I suddenly feel like that’s happening in the acting world," she shared. "Partly because we are emerging from this spectacular #MeToo period, but also because women are feeling an inherent sense of connection with each other."

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She added: "We’re less afraid to say what we think now."