In Atomic Blonde, a new spy thriller in which Charlize Theron beats the shit out of a bunch of men while losing her own share of blood, there's a lesbian sex scene between Theron and her costar Sofia Boutella. You may have heard about it. And unlike a million and one action movies where sex scenes add R-rated material just for the sake of putting a naked woman on screen, Theron says that her sex scene is pivotal to the plot.

"I could have hooked up with a guy, but it's great that I hooked up with a girl. I'm proud of that," she said at Comic-Con this weekend. "The story gets furthered through that relationship more than it would have with a man. The one time she struggles with her humanity and vulnerability is in that scene... I'm glad she didn't have to examine her brokenness with a man."

"I love me a love-making scene with a man," she continued. "I love it in my real life. So I got nothing against that. But I think it was good for this movie."

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Theron, who works behind the scenes as well as onscreen to get Hollywood to tell women's stories, also discussed her character Lorraine's backstory: "[Usually] we need a reason to become a warrior," she said. "And I have problem with that because we really are warriors, and it's time for us to be shown that way... We don't need to lose a child or a husband or have some kind of revenge story to become a warrior. We don't need that today."

As in, there's no reason a woman like Lorraine should have to survive a horribly traumatic incident to spur her into becoming a fighter. That's weak story-telling. She can just be a fighter.

As for other franchises she might or might not contribute to, Theron told the Comic-Con audience she's "waiting" for George Miller to get going on a Mad Max sequel, but she'll pass on any offers to take over the James Bond franchise. "I'm happy to make a couple more movies as Lorraine," she said, "but Daniel [Craig] or Idris [Elba] would be great." If Arrested Development calls her up, however, she would "of course" make herself available. "She was what got me ready for MI7 spy Lorraine Broughton," Theron said of her character Rita Leeds. Thank god for Arrested Development.

And Theron urged the audience to see Atomic Blonde and other movies created, acted, and produced by women so that women can keep creating, acting, and producing them. "We need you guys to support us," she said. "We need you guys to make it clear we're just as good as the guys. Plus, we have boobs. They don't have boobs."

Never a truer statement.

From: Esquire US