Emmy Rossum Says 'Shameless' Hot Scenes Made Dating Difficult for Her

In an interview on the Pretty Tough podcast, hosted by Maria Sharapova, Emmy Rossum revealed that nudity in Shameless Her love life became complicated during the nine years she played Fiona Gallagher. The actress said that the men she dated confused the character with the real person.

"All the guys I dated had preconceived ideas about who I was or what I was like sexually," Rossum said. She described the experience as "bizarre" and said she was surprised by how difficult it is for people to separate fiction from reality.

One encounter in particular stuck in her memory. She recounts going out with a man with political ambitions who expressed concern about how her work might reflect on him. "He said he wanted to be president someday. I replied that it was a great goal. Then he asked if running for public office while dating someone who had been exposed the way I had been would be complicated for him," she recalled. "I thought that conversation was insane."

The actress, who was 24 when the series premiered in 2011, spoke about the challenges of dating as a young artist. "You're trying to figure out who you are, establishing yourself as an artist, and at the same time there are all these preconceived ideas about you because your body is your art. People get confused."

Today, Rossum has been married to the creator of Mr. Robot, Sam Esmail, since 2017. The couple has a 5-year-old daughter and a 3-year-old son. She says she was attracted to him because of their shared values. "We are very similar. Family first, work second. When one of us needs to work, the other takes care of the family. When I'm on tour or filming, he's there to take and pick up the kids."