8. Natalie Portman - Closer
Natalie Portman has been acting in movies ever since she was a kid, though it wasn't until the movie
Closer (2004) that she opted to take on a role that purposely cast a light on her blatant sexuality. Up until that point, Portman had been rather guarded about how or when she exposed her body on the screen, and this marked the first time that movie-goers ever got to see the actress in a revealing light. The wait most definitely was worth it. In
Closer, Portman plays a stripper, plain and simple. Though the movie was billed as an erotic thriller of sorts, I don't think anybody was quite prepared to see the actress clad quite so skimpily - the moment where she "exposes" herself to an awed Clive Owen felt rather unreal, to be honest. Recently Portman has, uh, "opened up" to more sexualised roles, and her wholesome image has faded. But there was a time when this actress was seen as a somebody who could only play moral and virtuous -
Closer certainly changed that.