Vanessa Hudgens has said that actors “lose grip” of their privacy by being in the public eye.

The former Disney star, who rose to fame in the first High School Musical TV film in 2006, had her privacy breached in 2007 when nude photos of her were leaked online.

Hudgens, 31, told Cosmopolitan UK that it was “a really traumatising thing for me”, adding: “It’s really f***ed up that people feel like they are entitled enough to share something that personal with the world.

“As an actor, you completely lose all grip of your own privacy and it’s really sad.

“It feels like that shouldn’t be the case, but unfortunately if enough people are interested, they’re going to do everything they can to get to know as much about you as they can, which is flattering, I guess, but then people take it too far and end up divulging things that should be personal.”

Hudgens said that she thinks “there’s a disconnect when you see your favourite actress on the screen, and you see them now on your TV in your homes, and you can watch them whenever you want”.

She added: “There’s almost – I don’t want to say lack of respect because that sounds negative – but it just makes you feel like you know them even though you don’t.”

At the time of the photo leak, Hudgens apologised for the images and said she was “embarrassed over the situation”, and Disney was forced to deny rumours that she would be dropped from the teen film franchise.

High School Musical 2 – Los Angeles
Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens at the height of their High School Musical fame in 2007 (Ian West/PA)

The actress and music star, who appeared in all three High School Musical films as Gabriella Montez opposite Zac Efron as her love interest Troy Bolton, said that she managed to avoid burning out after being a child star by looking after herself and also by being “a bit anti-social”.

“Looking back, it feels like another lifetime,” she said.

“I mean, I’m tired for sure. I take good care of myself. I know the things that matter the most – I do love my job, but my job isn’t everything. My family is – my partner and my friends are the things that keep me grounded.”

Hudgens, who has also appeared in the films Spring Breakers, Sucker Punch and Netflix’s The Princess Switch, added: “I was also a really shy kid.

“I love acting and being on the stage and hiding behind a character, but when it came to me, Vanessa, being out there, I was never one for that and it’s something I’m still getting used to.

“I think being a shy kid really helped me not go down the wrong path – being a bit anti-social, literally.”

The full interview is in the February issue of Cosmopolitan UK, out now.