Lohan: Playboy Shoot Gave her 'Confidence'

(NewsCore) - Lindsay Lohan said posing for Playboy magazine not only felt natural, it gave her "confidence" and "was an important thing for me as a woman."

"Sex and sexuality are a part of nature, and I go along with nature," she told the men's magazine, in comments that appeared online just days after her nude photoshoot leaked on a file-sharing website based in the Ukraine.

"I think Marilyn Monroe once said that," Lohan continued. "I certainly agree with her … Knowing yourself and your body is so important because it gives you confidence, and in life, women need confidence."

"It's a very male-dominated world to begin with, so knowing yourself and being comfortable with your body is an important thing for me as a woman. Everyone is entitled to their opinion, but this is mine," she added.

Lohan, 25, was supposed to unveil her Playboy spread Thursday on "The Ellen DeGeneres Show," her first TV interview since her most recent legal drama.

But last Wednesday, the cover leaked online and by Friday all 10 images of Lohan's Marilyn Monroe-inspired nude spread hit the internet -- prompting the magazine to release the issue ahead of schedule.

Playboy founder Hugh Hefner tweeted Friday, "Because of the interest and the internet leak, we're releasing the Lindsay Lohan issue early ... Hot Hot Hot."

He said the "issue will make the perfect Christmas issue for men in your life -- father, son, husband, boyfriend, whoever."

Lohan reportedly made $1 million posing for the magazine.

Read more: New York Post