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Olivia Newton John hits back at claims Grease is sexist!

"It’s a story from the 50s where things were different!"
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Olivia Newton John has denied claims the 1978 film Grease is “sexist”, after her character was criticised for undergoing a sexy transformation.

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WATCH: The latest Grease reunion is ADORABLE!

Speaking to The Guardian recently, the 72-year-old actress weighed in on the debate that the movie musical is inappropriate in the wake of the #MeToo movement.

When asked about the film’s portrayal of women compared to men, Olivia brushed off sexist claims, saying that it’s simply about a girl and a guy who fall in love.

Olivia Newton John Grease backlash sexist
Olivia Newton John (pictured) has denied claims the 1978 film Grease is “sexist”, after her character was criticised for undergoing a sexy transformation. (Credit: Getty)
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For anyone who hasn’t seen the iconic flick, which grossed more than $400 million at the box office, it tells the tale of two teens who reunite at school following a summer fling.

Set in the 1950s, the lovebirds come from vastly different worlds, but it’s ultimately Olivia’s character Sandy who undergoes a makeover to win over her beau.

“It’s a story from the 50s where things were different. Everyone forgets that, at the end, he changes for her, too. There’s nothing deep in there about the #MeToo movement,” she said.

“It’s just a girl who loves a guy, and she thinks if she does that, he’ll like her,” Olivia said, referring to her character changing her “girl next door” image.

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“And he thinks if he does that, she’ll like him. I think that’s pretty real. People do that for each other. It was a fun love story,” she added.

Olivia Newton John Grease backlash sexist
Olivia (left with co-star John Travolta) brushed off sexist claims, saying that the film is just a movie about a girl and a guy who fall in love. (Credit: Getty)

Olivia’s comments came after she recently broke her silence on her Grease co-star John Travolta’s wife Kelly Preston’s tragic passing due to breast cancer.

In a candid chat with Entertainment Tonight Canada, the actress and Xanadu singer spoke about Kelly, who died in July this year at just 57.

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“John and Kelly chose to keep her illness secret and private and so I want to honour that and just say that they’re dear friends and she was a beautiful human,” Olivia said.

Olivia Newton John Grease backlash sexist
Olivia (left) recently discussed her ongoing friendship with John Travolta (right) who played the Danny Zuko to her Sandy Olsson in Grease. (Credit: Getty)

The Grease star, who was first diagnosed with breast cancer in 1992, also reflected on her own battle with cancer that she’s now going through for the third time.

“I’ve lost way too many friends to cancer and you know I’m on that journey myself so I’m really powerfully driven to find kinder answers for treatments for cancer, prevention and treatments,” she confessed.

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Olivia Newton-John also discussed her ongoing friendship with John Travolta who played the Danny Zuko to her Sandy Olsson in Grease.

“He’s a dear friend and he always will be,” Olivia said.

“We formed great bonds making that film as you can imagine and it’s always amazing to me that it’s 40 years now and every 10 years I’ve thought ‘Oh it’s going to fade away now’ but it just gets bigger and bigger.”

She added: “It seems to find a younger audience all the time, it’s really quite amazing.”

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Olivia Newton John Grease backlash sexist
Set in the 1950s, Grease’s lead characters come from vastly different worlds, but it’s ultimately Olivia’s character Sandy who undergoes a makeover to win over her beau. (Credit: Getty)

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