Elizabeth Banks talks to her children "very openly" about sex.

'The Hunger Games' star has two sons with her husband Max Handelman, and she's insisted it's important to have frank conversations with the boys because she learned from her own mother that talking about sex "early and often" is actually very helpful when youngsters are growing up.

Speaking on 'The Graham Norton Show', Elizabeth explained: "I am not embarrassed at all and I am very open with them. I learnt from my own mother that those conversations should happen as early and as often as possible."

She added: "The only way to lower the abortion rate is by great sex education to empower women to understand about what’s going on with their bodies and how to protect themselves and to learn that sex can be fun."

Elizabeth stars in new movie 'Call Jane' which tells the story of a married woman with an unwanted pregnancy who is unable to get a legal abortion and turns to a group of suburban women for help.

The film was in development long before the US supreme court overturned Roe v. Wade - the landmark ruling which gave women the constitutional right to a termination - and Elizabeth insists the bombshell decision made the movie's theme even more meaningful.

She added: "The film was written and made before Roe v. Wade was reversed but now we feel a much deeper responsibility to put this story out."

'The Graham Norton Show' airs on BBC One on Friday October 14 at 10.40pm. It is also available on BBC iPlayer.