Scarlett Johansson exposes Hollywood's dark past: 'It was tough'

Scarlett Johansson is shining a light on what she describes as a dark period of Hollywood in the early 2000s.

In a candid interview with CBS Sunday Morning, she recalls women faced challenges in the industry, noting they were picked for looks rather than their acting range.

“It was tough. There was a lot placed on how women looked,” she says, adding that women were often typecast. “What was offered at that time for women my age, as far as acting roles or opportunities, was much slimmer than it is now.”

Given her example, Johansson adds that it was a source of frustration for her after getting the same "bombshell" roles in the early 2000s, which did not allow her to exercise her acting range.

“You would get really pigeonholed and offered the same [roles]. It would be like the other woman, or the side piece, the bombshell,” she shares. “That was the archetype that was prevalent when I was that age.”

Angered Johansson did not blend in with such conditions in the industry at the time and took a flight to the New York theatre scene.

Her time there, she recalls, made her realize that waiting for "the right role" is not every character's worth.

“It’s something that I learned over time, but it’s hard,” the Marvel star shares. “Once you start working, you really feel like every job is going to be your last and that if you get opportunities to work, you have to keep taking them. 

"Even though they might not be as varied as the jobs that really give you pleasure.”

“Every actor feels like that, because it is so competitive, and I think once you do have the spotlight, you want to keep it on you. I mean, that’s the instinct I think for a young actor, or any actor.”

Johansson's experience offers a window into the industry, which she criticized as she made her breakout debut at 17 in 2003's Lost in Translation.