Millie Bobby Brown was brought to tears on Monday after an “uncomfortable” and unwelcome interaction with a fan while she was out Christmas shopping with her mother.
The 16-year-old shared a teary video on her Instagram story after the encounter, in which a woman approached the Stranger Things star and asked to record her, to which she said no.
“At the end of the day, I don’t need to justify it to anyone,” Millie said. “If I don’t want to be taken a video of, I don’t have to be.”
But the woman in question refused to respect the young star’s wishes.
“I was paying and she walked past me and began to video me again. And I said, ‘I’m a human being.’ Like, what ― what more can I ask from you?” she said tearfully. “She said, ‘So I can’t take a video of a human being?’ And I said, ‘No! Not when I said no’.
“It just makes me upset when people try to push the boundary. And I just wish people were more respectful.”
Though the actor has been in the public eye for a few years now, she told fans that she is “still trying to navigate this all” and added that “it’s still overwhelming”.
“I will take a picture with you, but when you push the boundary and you try and fight me on it ― Where are my rights to say no?” she added.
“I’m making this video to say, you have to show more respect for others, no matter who they are, what they do. It’s just manners.”
Millie – who appeared to have deleted her TikTok account around the same time as posting her tearful video – later told fans she was doing well after the incident.
“I am totally fine now. But was emotional in the moment because I felt uncomfortable and disrespected,” she wrote in a message posted on social media.
Earlier this year, the teenager spoke about how painful and difficult growing up in the spotlight can be.
“The last few years haven’t been easy, I’ll admit that,” she wrote on Instagram in February. “There are moments i get frustrated from the inaccuracy, inappropriate comments, sexualisation, and unnecessary insults that ultimately have resulted in pain and insecurity for me.”
“But not ever will i be defeated,” she added. “I’ll continue doing what i love and spreading the message [of kindness] in order to make change.”