Emmy Rossum Discusses How 'Shameless' Nudity Complicated Dating
The actress shared that potential partners often had preconceived notions about her due to her role in the Showtime series.
Emmy Rossum found that dating proved "quite tricky" during her tenure on the Showtime series "Shameless," largely due to the show's frequent nudity. Rossum, who starred on the series for nine years before departing in 2018, explained on Maria Sharapova's podcast, "Pretty Tough," that many men she encountered had preconceived notions about her. "All of the guys that I would go out with had preconceived notions of who I was or how I was sexually. It was totally bizarre," she stated.
Rossum recalled one instance where a man aspiring to hold political office expressed concern about how her public image might affect his career. "He’s like, ‘But I feel like running for office dating someone, you know, who’s been exposed in the way that you have, do you think that would be tricky for me?’ And I was like, ‘This is an insane conversation to have,’” Rossum recounted, recognizing they were not a good match.
She elaborated on the challenges of navigating personal relationships while her body was closely tied to her artistic expression on screen. "And there’s also all these preconceived notions about you that are out there that are associated with [you] because your body is your art, right? And people can get confused," she said.
Rossum also touched upon her departure from "Shameless," which she described as being filled with "a lot of grief and sorrow" because she enjoyed the role. However, she ultimately left to pursue her own creative projects, a decision encouraged by the show's executive producer, John Wells. This move allowed her to take a more active role in developing and producing her own content.