Emily Atack says it was 'nice not to be sexy' for her latest film role

Actress Emily Atack says it was “nice not to be sexy” for her latest film role.

Atack, who made her name as party-loving Charlotte on The Inbetweeners, plays PE teacher Becky in forthcoming Disney movie Patrick, starring with Bridget Jones Baby actress Beattie Edmondson.

The 28-year-old said: “The role being stripped back and unglamorous was very different for me but I think I got used to it by the second day.

“This was after my fake tan got scrubbed off and my hair was dark and so far from the ‘blondie’ I usually am.

“Plus I play a PE teacher so I’m in my Lycra which isn’t the most flattering. It was nice to not have to worry about being sexy because the roles I have always played have been that way.

“I’m not naturally a sexy person but I’ve been trained into that.”

She added director Mandie Fletcher had to remind her to tone down her “bad habits”, saying: “I remember the director saying to me, ‘just to remind you, you don’t have to be sexy and flirtatious’.”

Atack highlighted the importance of a push towards “more normal” role models in the film industry because of the lasting impact on children.

She said: “I feel really strongly about a push for more normal role models than glamorous models. I just think it’s healthier because sometimes we look to movies and its not real life.

“Young girls are easily influenced by the things that they watch and I think it’s just nice to have something that’s quite realistic instead of a fairy-tale, it’s realistic and achievable.

“There’s no element of fantasy and I think that’s a much healthier way to look up to something as a young person.”

The film reunited Absolutely Fabulous director Fletcher and Edmondson’s mother Jennifer Saunders, who takes a role in the film.

Patrick will be released by Buena Vista International UK on 29 June