Jessica Alba says she has felt 'demeaned' over her movie career

Jessica Alba has said that she would work harder than her male counterparts on movies, but still felt 'demeaned' by her treatment in show business.

The Sin City and Fantastic Four star, who also runs billion-dollar ethical goods business The Honest Company, made the comments in the latest issue of Cosmopolitan.

“I was demeaned so much. The way women were treated in many circumstances, I was just over it,” she said.

Read more: Transformers age gap joke was ‘problematic’

“I’d do a lot of press; the guys did nothing compared to what I was doing. I was like, 'I’m done doing it this way'.

“I wasn’t competitive with other actresses, I was competitive with male actors. I was like, 'Why can’t I be the star of an action series? Why can’t I open movies? Why can’t I put asses on seats?'

“The more people get used to women starring in stuff, the easier it will get for us to be more equal.

“I didn’t want to be the women who Bruce Willis was into in Die Hard, I wanted to be Bruce Willis!”

Alba, who was a child actress and model from the age of five, also said that she'd experienced the dark side of Hollywood, but did not go into detail.

“I’m just gonna… say nothing, because I don’t really feel like focusing on that. Just know that I’ve been through it and I guess I learned how to have a really thick skin,” she added.

Read more: Disney quietly removes ‘casting couch blooper’ from Toy Story 2

“I think that’s why I was so aggressive and such a tomboy and probably cursed too much. I’ve always approached everything with a bit of cynicism and a chip on my shoulder. Not in a bad way; in a way that drove me.”

She co-founded The Honest Company in 2012, valued at just under $1 billion in 2017.

Alba currently stars in LA's Finest with Gabrielle Union, a spin-off TV series from the Bad Boys movies.