British actress Carey Mulligan speaks to the media during her arrival on the red carpet for the opening ceremony of the 7th edition of the Dubai International Film Festival December 12, 2010. REUTERs/Jumana El Heloueh

Carey Mulligan has certainly proven her acting chops, but her upcoming movie Shame will showcase the young talent's other assets.

Oscar-nominated Mulligan not only sings in the much-anticipated film, but she also goes full frontal in a scene with Michael Fassbender. It is her first time doing both in front of the cameras.

Curiously enough, the young star found the latter much more intimidating than stripping off her clothes. "Singing is like really exposing yourself," she explained to E! at the Hollywood Film Awards. "I was playing sort of a singer, so I was pretending to have a talent I don't necessarily believe I have. So singing was quite scary."

The British beauty will be singing "New York, New York" for the movie.

British actress Carey Mulligan holds her Hollywood Supporting Actress Award backstage at the 15th Annual Hollywood Awards Gala in Beverly Hills, California October 24, 2011. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni

Steve McQueen's Shame is an intense drama revolving around a sex addict Brandon (Fassbender) and his troubled sister Cissy (Mulligan) who comes to live with him indefinitely.

The Oscar contender has a deeply disturbing storyline, explicit sexual content and multiple nude scenes from both Mulligan and Fassbender, all of which led to an NC-17 rating in the US.

FOX Searchlight joint president Steve Gilula told the Hollywood Reporter he'd rather think of the rating as "a badge of honor, not a scarlet letter." The studio chose not to appeal the NC-17 rating or edit the final film.

Mulligan fully supports the decision of Searchlight. "It's a film for grownups," Mulligan pointed out. "Steve doesn't really make sort of family films. He wanted to make a film about real people and talk about things people don't like to talk about and that make them feel uncomfortable. I congratulate him for it."

British actress Carey Mulligan poses at the 19th Annual BAFTA (British Academy of Film and Television Arts) Los Angeles Britannia Awards in Los Angeles November 4, 2010. REUTERS/Mario Anzuoni

Unsurprisingly, Mulligan found stripping for a role nerve-racking. In an interview with USA Today, she calls the nerves "the usual stuff that a woman goes through."

"Over the last two years I have been photographed a lot, and I've seen pictures and read things that are awful," she added. "I don't care anymore. I have a natural fear about being judged by my figure. Just girl (stuff) that you would expect. "