Olivia Wilde seemed to be okay with baring it all on the show Vinyl because quite honestly she didn’t have to really bare it ALL. On HBO, as an actor, the expectation seems to be that at one point or another there’s a chance that you might have to get naked, as in all the way down to your birthday suit. A lot of shows have nudity on them to such a level that what we might have seen as amazing as kids is now considered light and barely passable with what’s out there now. Nowadays if you watch HBO it’s just another step away from full out porn.
But for Olivia Wilde the best part was that she got to wear a merkin, which is a covering that is used to simulate pubic hair and thereby cover up a woman’s privates. On top the nudity is just how it’s seen for the most part, each person’s body is their own, but down below a lot of women use a merkin, even though the patches are quite hairy and hearken back to more of a 70’s style that’s been largely outdated for many years. But it does have the advantage of easing a person’s mind if they’re a little self-conscious about appearing fully nude. Some people can barely take their shirt off in front of others while others would likely refuse on the grounds that it would violate their code of ethics if they had to shed too much skin. This is HBO however, a primetime cable network that has made careers in the past and is still a viable company when it comes to entertainment.
If actors want to keep their career intact and keep working then it’s usually advised that they either get with the program and get comfortable with being naked, or go elsewhere. There’s really no room for embarrassment on an HBO set since so many shows deal openly with nudity and similar content. Olivia Wilde has stated that the merkin was kind of odd to wear and the hair was a bit difficult to get used to, but she did this for the show and for a chance at furthering her career, as is wise for any actor. Being nude isn’t the point really, it’s just another part of the show, but for those that balk at taking their clothes off it tends to go down as a missed opportunity. Sometimes you have to simply bite the bullet and take on roles that require you to strip down to the buff and do your very best with the knowledge that everyone is looking at you. A great number of actors on HBO have done it throughout the years, and many of them have gone on to enjoy great careers.
The merkin though is something that at least preserves part of a woman’s modesty and seems quite useful in doing so. Some people use body doubles, others use different means, but the point of all of it is that they’re comfortable in such situations.
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