Lili Reinhart was left "upset" by recent pregnancy rumours involving her.

Lili Reinhart

Lili Reinhart

The 21-year-old actress was forced to take to social media last month to insist she wasn't expecting a baby after an "unflattering" photograph of her was shared on the Internet, and she has now revealed the questions about her body were hurtful for her to read.

She said: "It was bugging me and at first it was really upsetting. I'm 21 - I'm not pregnant, I don't want people to think I'm pregnant if I'm not pregnant. It did take a hit to my self-esteem for a second and then I kind of picked myself back up and said, 'I'm not going to let this ruin my day!'"

The 'Riverdale' star added that whilst some people might just "sweep it under the rug" and ignore the rumours, she wanted to make sure her body wasn't a subject that was up for debate.

Speaking to 'Entertainment Tonight', she said: "I feel like a lot of people say you should just sweep it under the rug, don't pay attention to it, but that's never really been my style," she said. "Maybe some people find that obnoxious, but I felt the need to say, 'No. I'm not pregnant.'

"And also, if I was, it's kind of sad that people felt the need to make my weight a topic of conversation, but it's just the world we live in. I'm going to always speak out about something that I feel I need to talk about."

Lili - who dating her 'Riverdale' co-star Cole Sprouse - first addressed the speculation on her Instagram story last month.

She wrote at the time: "Nope. Not pregnant. This is just my body. And sometimes I'm bloated. Sometimes an unflattering photo is taken of me. Sometimes I go through periods where I gain weight."

The star also slammed those who "put so much time and effort" into criticising other people for the shape of their bodies.

She added: "My body is something that I will NEVER apologize for. My body will constantly go through change. And so will yours. And that's fine. So let's not put so much time and effort into caring about a stranger's figure. (sic)"