Brooke Shields recalls terrifying moment fan attempted to cut her hair off aged 12

Brooke Shields has opened up about the terrifying moment a fan almost cut her hair off at a 'disorderly' Pretty Baby screening in 1978.

The American actress, now 61, was the star of the controversial film Pretty Baby in the late 70s, when she played 12-year-old Violet, who is groomed to become a prostitute like her mother.

But many countries boycotted the film due to its explicit and graphic nature, with critics centered on the casting of Shields, who was only 11 years old during filming, and her inclusion in nude and semi-nude scenes.

Decades on from the movie's release, Shields has been very candid about her experiences in the controversial role, as well as the chaos surrounding it.

In her memoir 'There Was a Little Girl', the mom-of-two opened up about a 'scary' and 'disorderly' screening at the Cannes Film Festival in 1978, at which a fan tried to cut off her hair.

Brooke Shields opened up about the 'scary' experience she had at screening for Pretty Baby in the 70s. (Paula Lobo/American Broadcasting Companies, Inc. via Getty Images)

Speaking with Vanity Fair, she said: "I had never seen frenzy like that. It was so obscene but absurd. I couldn’t identify with it. . . . The magnitude of the attention was really scary."

Shields described the moment her mom's partner, Bob Karsian, had to act as her bodyguard as the family pushed their way through the 'wall of people'.

"A fan had reached out to me and grabbed a clump of my hair and was just about to cut it off with a pair of scissors," she wrote.

"Bob karate-chopped the arm away and I escaped."

As for the grown man who attempted to snip the pre-teen's hair, he apologized and admitted, 'I don't know what made me do that,' she recalled.

The star was just 11 years old when she portrayed the controversial character. (Central Press/Getty Images)

In 2023, a documentary was released on Disney+, which follows the life and career of the actress and model, from her exploitation as a child star to her later liberation as an adult.

But while she acknowledges the controversies surrounding the film, Shields admits that she does not regret starring in the movie.

"It was the best creative project I’ve ever been associated with, the best group of people I’ve ever been blessed enough to work with," she said.

Speaking with PEOPLE in 2024, her daughters had a slightly different take.

Her 20-year-old daughter Grier Hammond Henchy said: "I don’t like this movie. I’ve seen enough of it on TikTok.

"I would prefer not to watch my mom being sold, as an 11-year-old prostitute. I’d rather watch the funny and happy ones."