Jessica Chastain says fashion helped boost her confidence as a teen.

The 'Zero Dark Thirty' actress used to get picked on for her red hair and freckles so started experimenting with her clothes and opted for a tomboy look in a bid to stand out when she realised she wasn't going to fit in.

She told French magazine Madame Figaro: ''I grew up in Sacramento in northern California. People teased me about the colour of my hair and my freckles.

''I longed to have blonde curly hair and a tan, like a 'real' California girl. The typical conformist teen! Fashion helped me accept myself, to express my creativity in another way.

''At the time I started to read Vogue, I cut my hair short, I started wearing cowboy boots and experimenting with different tomboy looks.''

The 36-year-old star is now the face of Yves Saint Laurent's ad campaign for their Manifesto fragrance, and she is doubly thrilled with the honour since she has always been a fan of the brand.

Jessica said: ''I have always been a fan of the Saint Laurent house, for its audacity and the emphasis it places on individuality ... My love story with YSL perfumes goes back to my high school years.

''My aunt used to wear Opium and she gave me a bottle with a little bit left in it. I felt very glamorous and grown up when I put a few drops on.''