She faced a barrage of online abuse after posing braless in a stunning photoshoot for Vanity Fair this month.

And now, Emma Watson has hit back at critics who claimed her shoot with fashion photographer Tim Walker diminished her feminist views, after one of the pictures showed her posing almost topless in an elegant Burberry rope cape.

Speaking to BBC, the 26-year-old actress - who is a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador - admitted she was completely 'stunned' by the controversy.

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Hitting back: Emma Watson has hit back at critics who claimed her shoot with fashion photographer Tim Walker diminished her feminist views. She is seen above at the world premiere of Beauty and the Beast in Hollywood on March 2

Speaking to BBC, the 26-year-old actress - who is a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador - admitted she was completely 'stunned' by the controversy. Seen above in the interview

Opening up about many's comments that she was a hypocrite, she explained her choice to go topless doesn't undermine her opinions.

She said: 'Feminism is not a stick with which to beat other women. It's about freedom, it's about liberation, it's about equality.

'I really don't know what my t**s have to do with it. It's very confusing. I'm always quietly stunned.'

Responding to her Beauty And The Beast co-star Dan Stevens about the controversy, she added: 'They were saying I couldn't be a feminist and have boobs'.

'Stunned': Speaking to BBC, the 26-year-old actress - who is a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador - admitted she was completely 'stunned' by the controversy

Her comments comes after she faced with social media backlash accusing her of being a 'hypocrite' for posing in such racy attire, in light of the ardent feminist speaking out against the sexualisation of women.

However, the British beauty received an influx of support from her loyal fans and fellow feminists, who blasted her critics and defended her choice to pose as she wishes.

The social media storm began with tweets including, 'Feminist: Page 3 girls? Topless? Ban them! Emma Watson topless? Brave and Stunning! #doublethink #hypocrisy'.

Social media backlash: Emma faced with social media backlash accusing her of being a 'hypocrite' for posing almost topless for Vanity Fair - but her fans have come back fighting in defence of the actress

'f**k Emma Watson for shaming Beyoncé and discrediting her feminism for being sexual; and then turning around to do a topless shoot though', another posted.

A third fan queried: 'emma watson said beyonce's feminism isn't good enough bc she's playing into the male gaze but now emma's topless in vf and that's okay?'

People appeared to be taking particular offence to the image because of Emma's past comments about Beyonce's brand of feminism, recalling a 2014 interview in which she described the singer's hyper sexy image as 'conflicting'.

Emma told Wonderland magazine at the time: 'As I was watching [Beyoncé’s visual album] I felt very conflicted, I felt her message felt very conflicted in the sense that on the one hand she is putting herself in a category of a feminist, but then the camera, it felt very male, such a male voyeuristic experience of her.'

Twitter reaction: The social media storm began shortly after the cover was released

Speaking out: Several people objected to Emma posing 'topless' after criticising Beyonce's brand of feminism for being too sexualised

Upsetting the BeyHive: Staunch feminist Emma previously said of Beyonce, 'I felt her message felt very conflicted'

Show of support: The 26-year-old actress - who is a UN Women Goodwill Ambassador - received an influx of support from her loyal fans and fellow feminists

Nevertheless, for every negative comment there were hundreds of positive ones, declaring that anyone who branded her a 'hypocrite' had completely missed the point of feminism.

One fan shared: 'If you think @EmmaWatson is a hypocrite, maybe consider you shouldn't be telling a woman what they can and can't do with their own body'.

'People who criticize Emma Watson for her photoshoot for Vanity Fair really have no clue about #feminism', another tweeted.

A third enthused: 'Emma Watson is not a Hypocrite her body her choice. #emmawatson'.

Firing back: For every negative comment there were hundreds of positive ones

Missing the point: People revealed that anyone who branded her a 'hypocrite' had missed the point of feminism

Double standards: Others pointed out the blatant double standard still prevalent in society

'Her body, her choice': The star's fans defended her choice to pose whichever way she wishes

Others pointed out the blatant double standard still prevalent in society, saying, 'emma watson is called a "hypocrite" and "anti-feminist" for posing semi-nude, but if a man were to do it, nothing would be said.'

'@EmmaWatson isn't a hypocrite for "showing" her breasts while claiming to be a feminist. The word means EQUALITY. Own your body, Emma!', another enthused.

Emma declared back in 2009 that 'I'm not just getting my kit off for anyone' - opening the feminist star up to criticism from some quarters.

Speaking to the Mail on Sunday's Live magazine, the then 18-year-old explained her stance on sexy shoots and her refusal to let stylists dictate her image.

Getting deep: Emma, who soared to fame in 2001 playing Hermione Granger in Harry Potter, gave an extremely insightful interview to accompany her stunning shoot as she delved into the wild world of Hollywood and where she stands as a former child star

'Personally, I don't actually think it's even that sexy. What's sexy about saying, "I'm here with my boobs out and a short skirt...have a look at everything I've got"?'

'My idea of sexy is that less is more. The less you reveal the more people can wonder.'

The actress added that she would only strip for famed arthouse director Bernardo Bertolucci, saying: 'I have no plans to do anything for the sake of it, or to shock people.'

Regardless of the fan furore, Emma looked simply sensational on the Vanity Fair cover - where she marred her punky hair do with a frothy white gown, in an image sitting alongside the words: 'The Bewitching Emma Watson'.

In her most daring snap to date, she went topless from beneath an intricately caged capelet which left nothing to the imagination, in a truly high fashion style.

A woman: It seems Beauty And The Beast has been Emma's true coming-of-age film, as she attributes the blockbuster, a live action remake of the 1991 cartoon, as becoming 'a woman' - from Hermione to Belle

That was then... She is currently blazing the promotional trail with the live action take (right) on 1991 fairy tale cartoon classic (left) Beauty And The Beast

She paired the modesty-protecting Burberry rope capelet with a high-waisted tight lace skirt from the luxury brand which provided the perfect muted palette to the dramatic shoot.

The staunch feminist, who uses her celebrity as a platform to promote women's rights, proudly acknowledged that Belle is 'absolutely a Disney princess, but she's not a passive character — she's in charge of her own destiny.'

Emma was determined to make Belle her own, as she reworked the famed character from a dreamy bookworm to her inventor father's assistant, who is in the midst of inventing a modern washing machine so she can read while the washer did its work.

In original costume sketches for the character, Belle was intended to wonder around in ballet pumps - an idea which irked Emma - who insisted she was to wear riding boots to ensure she could muck in with work in the French village setting.

Her hero: Emma revealed that she showed the final cut of Beauty And The Beast to legendary feminist Gloria Steinem (pictured in 1997), who she revealed she was desperately seeking a seal of approval from so as to ensure her portrayal of Belle was true to women.

While she has determinedly created an impressive catalogue of work at just 26, it seems Emma contrasts to her peers in some ambitions as she admits to having no interest in winning an Oscar.

Emma revealed that she showed the final cut of Beauty And The Beast to both her mother and legendary feminist Gloria Steinem, who she revealed she was desperately seeking a seal of approval from so as to ensure her portrayal of Belle was true to women.

Insistent that her focus was on how movies convey to the public rather than on accolades, she said: 'I couldn't care less if I won an Oscar or not if the movie didn't say something that I felt was important for people to hear'.

Emma, who lived in Paris until she was five, is the daughter English lawyers Jacqueline Luesby and Chris Watson, who divorced when she was young. After the split she lived with her mother in Oxfordshire in the week while spending weekends in London with her dad.

What Oscar? While she has determinedly created an impressive catalogue of work at just 26, it seems Emma contrasts to her peers in some ambitions as she admits to having no interest in winning an Oscar

Mum and dad: Emma is the daughter English lawyers Jacqueline Luesby (left) and Chris Watson (right), who divorced when she was young. After the split she lived with her mother in Oxfordshire in the week while spending weekends in London with her dad

The conscientious star, who achieved eight A* and two A grades while taking her GCSEs during Harry Potter filming, revealed her love of books brought her closer to her dad - connecting the two in 'precious' moments.

After spending her early life on film sets, she admits books were an anchor to 'normal' life away from glitz, glamour and the glare of cameras.

In a tearful moment in the interview, she revealed: 'Books gave me a way to connect with my father. Some of my most precious and treasured moments... I just remember him reading to me before bed and how he used to do all the different voices.

'I grew up on film sets, and books were my connection to the outside world. They were my connection to my friends back at school because if I was reading what they were reading we'd have something in common. Later in life, they became an escape, a means of empowerment, a friend I could rely on.'

The March issue of Vanity Fair is on news stands on March 3