Charlize Theron Compares Internet Attention to Rape

Actress comes under fire for her comments to Sky News.

ByABC News
May 30, 2014, 1:19 PM
Actress Charlize Theron attends the premiere of "A Million Ways to Die in the West" May 15, 2014, in Westwood, Calif.
Actress Charlize Theron attends the premiere of "A Million Ways to Die in the West" May 15, 2014, in Westwood, Calif.
Frazer Harrison/Getty Images

May 30, 2014— -- Critics are demanding an apology from Charlize Theron after her recent comment comparing online media's pervasive interest into her personal life to "feeling raped."

Theron made the remark to Sky News while in the U.K. to promote her new film "A Million Ways to Die in the West."

Asked whether she ever Googled herself, the Oscar winner said, "I don't do that, so that's my saving grace. When you start living in that world, and doing that, you start, I guess, feeling raped."

Charlize Theron Opens Up about Her Romance with Sean Penn

Asked whether she felt that strongly about the issue, she said, "Well, you know when it comes to your son and your private life. Maybe that's just me."

She added, "Some people might relish all that stuff but there are certain things in my life that I think of as very sacred and I am very protective over them."

Theron, 38, a single mother to adopted son Jackson, has come under increased media scrutiny since she began dating fellow Oscar-winner Sean Penn.

Charlize Theron on Sean Penn Romance: 'It's Nice Not to Be Single'

"My job has made my life incredibly blessed and good and I am very grateful for that, but it does not mean that every aspect of my life all of a sudden becomes fodder for an article," she told Sky News. "I try to protect against that as much as I can."

Theron's "rape" comparison has drawn criticism on social media, with some calling her remark "disgraceful" and others demanding she apologize.

A rep for the actress did not immediately respond to ABC News' request for comment.