Lady Macbeth's Florence Pugh appreciates 'difficult' sex scenes after watching them back

While some actresses may shy away from nudity on the big screen − even opting for a body double − Florence Pugh has revealed that she can feel a sense of appreciation after watching her "beautiful" scenes back.

Speaking to The Standard, the star of William Oldroyd's dark period drama Lady Macbeth said that although they were ''difficult'' to shoot, the storyline would have been weakened without them.

The 21-year-old rising star plays the role of Katherine, an oppressed young woman trapped in a loveless arranged marriage with a cruel older man who starts a passionate affair with a servant.

Pugh's performance – striking the right balance of sensuality, ruthlessness and vulnerability − earned her the Evening Standard Breakthrough Award in 2016.

Recalling her initial thoughts on her teenage alter ago's extra-marital activities, she said it felt right that they were included.

"Reading any script, if any nudity comes up you can pretty much gauge it pretty quickly. If it feels necessary then you read it and go 'Oh well that's quite lovely'," Pugh told the Standard.

"In a storyline where a 19-year-old is starting a relationship with a really hunky farmhand, of course, they're going to be in bed every two seconds, that's what they do.

"That's what she's been dying to do since she got married so it never really felt like it just came in at the end – it was very natural."

Pugh adds that just because the racy scenes fit the narrative, doesn't mean that it was an easy feat stripping off for the camera. "I don't like prancing around naked every two seconds," she said. "You just have to realise that what you're doing, if you do it right, will be beautiful and if you don't then fingers crossed. But it was and I really appreciate all those scenes now watching them back."

She added: "That's not to say that scenes weren't difficult, they were. Lots of the violent scenes I did find difficult."

Lady Macbeth is scheduled for release on 28 April.