The daughter of Bruce Willis and Demi Moore defends the racy photo shoot which sees her tied up as she wear nothing but boots in one snap, insisting it's about female empowerment.

• Oct 21, 2020

AceShowbiz - Rumer Willis was devastated by the "harsh" reaction to a series of racy bondage-themed photos she shared last month (Sep20) - because they were supposed to be all about female empowerment.

The "House Bunny" star posted a series of sexy shots, in which she dons a black patent leather leotard, wielding a whip, and even tied up with a black cord, on Instagram, and in one shot she wears nothing but a pair of black thigh-high boots.

But she wasn't expecting such a backlash to the arty images, taken by her friend, artist Tyler Shields, who is known for his daring photography.

"There was just a part of me that was feeling really empowered and good about myself (thanks to the photos). I knew that it (shoot) would probably bring up a lot of comments, but I was not at all prepared for the amount of negativity," she explains while guest hosting U.S chat show "The Talk" on Monday (19Oct20).

And the actress is most upset by the reaction from women because the theme for the project was "taking back power."

"It was really harsh...," she says, "people saying, 'You should be ashamed of yourself' and 'This is disgusting...', and even people talking about... how bondage is harmful for trauma survivors. But then, there's women also who said, 'I actually am a trauma survivor and I do bondage and it's helped me reclaim my sexuality.' "

"Tyler and I had been shooting (photos) for a long time, and he's someone that always likes pushing the limits. We were just having a conversation about how sexuality and all things surrounding women, whether it's your sexuality, your period, whether or not you're going to have a child, or you're not, how you dress... There are so many rules of what you can do, what you can't do, and what you can and can't share."

Fortunately, mum and dad - Bruce Willis and Demi Moore - have no problem with the risque art, though she's still not sure if her father has seen the pictures.

"Thankfully my dad does not have Instagram," she smiles. "They're both kind of not the most tech savvy. My mum can do Etsy (online shopping network) very well but not so much on Instagram. But they've always been very supportive of us, of all my sisters and I, and especially because we are a household of so many women, why not celebrate it?"