Actor Keith Carradine speaks out over on-screen kiss with Brooke Shields when he was 27 and she was just 11

​Actor Keith Carradine has opened up about his on-screen kiss with Brooke Shields when he was 27 and she was just 11.

Back in 1978, Carradine starred in the historical drama film, Pretty Baby, alongside Shields, who played the role of a child prostitute living in New Orleans.

Brooke Shields and Keith Carradine starred in the film 'Pretty Baby' (1978). Credit: Michael Ochs Archives / Getty

The film sparked public outcry as Shields, who was 11 at the time, appeared in nude and semi-nude scenes and was even forced to kiss her 27-year-old co-star.

It was also reported that her mother Teri was present on set for filming and told her daughter that it was all just "make-believe".

The actress has candidly addressed the controversial movie and her rise to stardom in her recent documentary Brooke Shields: Pretty Baby.

Keith Carradine has opened up about his on-screen kiss with Shields. Credit: Jon Kopaloff / Getty

Carradine - now 75 - has spoken out about his part in the 1978 film and confessed that he was "naive" for taking the role at the time.

"There is, of course, no way that film would be made today," he said in an interview with Yahoo Entertainment. "Nor should we. I was invited to participate by one of the world's premiere filmmakers and it was made by a major film studio, and I trusted the people with whom I was working that it would be handled properly and delicately."

"And frankly, I was 27 years old at the time, and pretty naive in my own right. But we were working with extraordinary artists, and I did feel like care was being taken," he added.

The Nashville actor expressed his support for Shields, and her choice to re-evaluate her experience as a child star in the entertainment business.

"I applaud Brooke's exploration of her life and re-examining things from her childhood," he said. "She's a substantial person, and I can only support her efforts at completing her exploration of how she feels about it now."

Credit: Manny Carabel / Getty

Pretty Baby isn't the only controversial movie Shields' mother - who passed away in 2012 -allowed her to film underage either, with The Blue Lagoon seeing her acting out intimate scenes at the age of 14.

Shields spoke about her mother's decision to allow her to be sexualized in films and modeling campaigns during an interview with The Sunday Times and said that she struggled to justify Teri's actions to her own daughters.

"That was hard for me, to not justify my mom to them, but when they asked, I thought, 'Oh God, I have to admit this,'" the Endless Love actress said. "But I don't know why she thought it was all right."

Despite it all, Shields admitted that she could not be angry as her late parent was so "insecure".

Featured image credit Jon Kopaloff / Getty