Comedian Amy Schumer has stripped off to pose for the prestigious Pirelli calendar, an annual release usually known for its images of naked supermodels.

This year however, the inclusion of Schumer and other high-profile women marks a change in direction for the tyre brand, which released its first calendar in 1964.

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Photographed by Annie Leibovitz and featuring Schumer, Serena Williams, Yoko Ono, Patti Smith and Tavi Gevinson, this year’s calendar has a focus on “women of substance”.

Serena Williams poses for Leibovitz’s lens.

Schumer shared one of the images of herself on social media with the caption: “Beautiful, gross, strong, thin, fat, pretty, ugly, sexy, disgusting, flawless, woman. Thank you @annieleibovitz.”

Posing topless with a takeaway coffee in one hand, the Trainwreck star looks uncharacteristically subdued in the black-and-white photo.

Amy Schumer poses for Pirelli. Photo: Annie Leibovitz.

In an interview with Harper’s Bazaar, Schumer, 34, said the photo shoot made her feel beautiful.

“I felt I looked more beautiful than I’ve ever felt in my life. And I felt like it looked like me,” Schumer said.

In a dramatic change of tack for the usually skin-filled calendar, not one woman posed entirely nude this year, with only Schumer and Williams posing without clothing.