The actress who played Katie Fitch in the critically acclaimed drama Skins revealed the “minimum wage” realities of the defining drama and why she is finally taking ownership of her 34-year-old self.
To the millions of teenagers who tuned into Channel 4 in the late 2000s, Skins was the ultimate badge of cool – a gritty, hedonistic, and unapologetic look at British youth. But for the actors at the heart of the storm, the reality was far less glamorous.
Megan Prescott, who shot to fame at just 16 as the abrasive but vulnerable Katie Fitch, has become the latest star to call out the show’s legacy. In a new interview with Cosmopolitan, the 34-year-old has slammed the “hypocrisy” of an industry that sexualised her as a child for profit, only to judge her for taking ownership of that same sexuality as an adult.
“I’m treated better on OnlyFans than I was on Skins,” she revealed to the magazine. While Skins launched the careers of Hollywood heavyweights like Nicholas Hoult, Dev Patel, and Daniel Kaluuya, Megan revealed that for the regular cast, the financial rewards didn’t match the level of fame.
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Megan claimed that the cast were essentially working for pennies despite appearing on one of the most popular shows ever to air in British television. She said, “We worked it out by the hour once, and it was minimum wage.”
While £400 a week felt like a fortune to a 16-year-old in the mid-2000s, the long-term reality was bleak. Due to the nature of their contracts, the stars see no residuals from the show’s massive success on streaming platforms like Netflix.
The safeguarding on set, or lack thereof, is the most important aspect of Megan’s criticism. She discusses how she approached filming explicit scenes as a teenager with older actors, a stance that other former students, like Kaya Scodelario, have taken to criticism in recent years.
Megan demonstrates a flagrant double standard in how society views women. She contends that the sexualized child star industry is happy to “skinny-dip” in its profits, but that it turns its back on those same women who choose to do it themselves.
She continued, “We constantly see it with child stars.” They are highly sexualized, but when they reach the point where they are like, “You’re right, this does make money, but I’m going to be the main benefactor of it,” “people are like, “Stop, I don’t like the idea of you selling sexuality.”
She continues, “I have always felt the hypocrisy.” Why can’t I, as a mature woman, take control of my body and sexuality and make three times as much money if we are all ok with me having sex scenes on television as a child?
Megan had a brutal “reality check” thanks to Leaving Skins. She moved into smaller roles in Holby City and Silent Witness before the show’s defining status, which made it difficult for her to find consistent acting work.
She initially denied being a victim of “internalized misogyny,” citing fear that the acting industry would have blacklisted her for working in strip clubs as a young woman.
Her life changed before the pandemic. Megan followed a friend’s advice and created an OnlyFans account after being furloughed by a manager. She claims that the decision has had a transformative impact on both financially and emotionally.
The former child star claimed she has finally found a place where she serves as the “main benefactor” of her own brand by removing the “middleman” of the streaming and production companies.
After six years, the teen drama, which aired on E4, came to an end.
Channel 4 has been contacted for comment.
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