Streep ticks off youngsters for nudity

But the 56-year-old yesterday said the shedding of clothes should stop at the studio door and lamented nude photos taken of Keira Knightley and Scarlett Johansson for Vanity Fair magazine.

Streep, a double Oscar winner and mother of four, said: "They obviously feel that to emerge from the pack they have to distinguish themselves by being more willing to do that than anyone else."

Streep admitted that younger actresses faced more competition breaking into the A-list than she did three decades ago. But she said: "It's not about the roles they aspire to - it's that they have to sexualise themselves."