Celebrities You'd Never Guess Are Introverts

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Jessica Chastain — Photo: Paul Bruinooge/Patrick McMullan via Getty

It may seem counterintuitive, but many famous actors and larger-than-life personalities are actually very shy. One of these admittedly reserved celebrities is Jessica Chastain, who confessed that she suffers from stage fright.

"I'm so shy," she told James Lipton on Inside the Actors Studio, "I'm almost having a breakdown right now."

"Acting for me has never been about wanting attention or wanting to be seen," Chastain admitted, "It's funny that I'm in a profession where that's where I am. There's so much I want to express; it's about connecting with another person and the intimacy of what that is, and so I have to overcome my shyness."

Lucky for J. Chas, her introversion hasn't slowed her down—she's earned two Oscar nominations in two consecutive years and continues to generate buzz for the newly released Miss Sloane.

Scroll down below to find out which other celebrities suffer from shyness.

01 of 13

Salma Hayek Pinault

The Oscar-nominated actress opened up about her stage fright, telling the source, "I suffer from stage fright. No one would know it, but I get it really, really bad. If you take the camera away and put me in front of an audience, I just die."

02 of 13

Jessica Simpson

"I'm a very shy person," the singer said back in 2009, "but I do believe that God has blessed me with a gift that I need to share."

03 of 13

Johnny Depp

The actor owned up to his shyness in an interview: "I'm f*ckin' shy, man," Depp bluntly admitted. "I'm living, in a sense, like a fugitive. I don't like to be in social situations— it's fine for me in a weird way, having to run and hide. Less and less, I have the opportunity to observe, because I'm the one being observed."

04 of 13

Kim Kardashian

In an interview, Kardashian admitted that she's not the brazen party girl the media perceives her as. "I'm the girl who's too shy to dance in a nightclub," she said, "The real Kim is very shy and reserved and not outspoken and loud like everybody assumes she is."

05 of 13

Blake Lively

Back in 2010, Lively opened up about her personality to The Town costar Ben Affleck, saying: "I'm actually a very shy person – that's a big secret, so don't tell. I'm naturally very shy, but I was brought up in a way where I had to get up and get out of that."

06 of 13

Jessica Alba

The actress and businesswoman shared that she's not as comfortable in the spotlight as she may appear. "I don't like being the center of attention," Alba said.

07 of 13

Nicole Kidman

"I'm also very shy, but as I've gotten older I've lost some of that shyness," the actress admitted in an interview.

08 of 13

Britney Spears

In the pop icon's I Am Britney Jean documentary, Spears confessed, "I'm not really made for this industry. I have always been kind of shy, since I was a little girl. It's who I am to be modest, so I really can't help it."

09 of 13

Keira Knightley

The British star admitted that she was "very shy" in her twenties. "It took me a lot of years to try and stop pleasing a lot of people and allow myself to have fun," she said.

10 of 13

Courteney Cox

When discussing her split from David Arquette, Cox said, "I'm a homebody. I like to have people over, but I'm a little socially not—I don't love it. David—he doesn't drink anymore, he's completely sober—but he likes to go out and dance. He really is a very gregarious guy. He's very outgoing. I'm much more of an introvert."

11 of 13

Zayn Malik

Back in 2012, Malik confessed: "I think my reserved personality is sometimes taken the wrong way and that's why people just perceive me as a bad boy whereas I'm actually just a little bit shy and awkward."

12 of 13

Beyoncé

Beyonce — William Volcov/Brazil Photo Press/LatinContent/Getty

Ten years ago, Queen Bey explained that her diva alter ego Sasha Fierce is so not Beyoncé IRL. "I wouldn't like Sasha if I met her offstage," she told Parade Magazine. "I'm not like her in real life at all—I'm not flirtatious and super-confident and fearless like her. What I feel onstage I don't feel anywhere else. It's an out-of-body experience. I created my stage persona to protect myself so that when I go home I don't have to think about what it is I do. Sasha isn't me. The people around me know who I really am."

13 of 13

Lady Gaga

The Joanne crooner reportedly told Hollywoodscoop that she suffers from shyness. "I generally really keep to myself and I am focused on my music. But when I do meet people that I have lots in common with it goes really well. I always feel shy in the Hollywood scene. I feel a bit like I did in high school, like I don't really fit in," she said.