Kristen Stewart: Why Equals actress decided to go public with her relationship with Alicia Cargile

'It opened my life up and I’m so much happier'

Kristen Stewart with Alicia Cargile (Getty Images)

Kristen Stewart has explained how she chose to be open about her relationship with Alicia Cargile to avoid any implications she is ashamed of being in a same-sex relationship.

Stewart joins transgender supermodel Hari Nef, the actress Amandla Stenberg and singer Zayn Malik as a cover star of Elle’s Rise of the Rebel September issue.

The Clouds of Sils Maria actress described how being open about this relationship allows her to take control of the narrative portrayed by tabloids and prevent any suggestions she is in any way uncomfortable about the perception of her dating a woman.

Stewart was targeted intensely by paparazzi during her relationship with her fellow Twilight co-star Robert Pattinson and the subsequent breakdown.

Cargile, a visual effects producer, and Stewart are believed to have first started dating in 2015. At the time, Stewart responded to speculation about her relationship with: “Google me - I’m not hiding.”

The 26-year-old said: “When I was dating a guy I was hiding everything that I did because everything personal felt like it was immediately trivialised, so I didn't like it. We were turned into these characters and placed into this ridiculous comic book, and I was like, ‘That’s mine. You’re making my relationship something that it’s not.’ I didn’t like that.

"But then it changed when I started dating a girl. I was like, ‘Actually, to hide this provides the implication that I’m not down with it or I’m ashamed of it, so I had to alter how I approached being in public. It opened my life up and I’m so much happier.”

Stewart was widely pictured with her ex-girlfriend, the French singer Soko, before rekindling her relationship Cargile, who joined Stewart at Cannes Film Festival on the red carpet.

“I think also right now I’m just really in love with my girlfriend," she added. "We’ve broken up a couple of times and gotten back together, and this time I was like, ‘Finally, I can feel again.’”