Sophie Turner, Jennifer Lawrence, and Other Stars Who’ve Been Asked to Lose Weight for Roles
At 21, Sophie Turner hasn’t been in Hollywood for long, but she’s already learned some of the pitfalls of her industry.
For a cover story in Porter magazine, the Game of Thrones star opened up about being asked to lose weight for a role. “There are often times when I have done jobs and they’ve told me that I have to lose weight, even when it has nothing to do with the character. It is so f***ed up,” she said. She shared plenty of insight into how casting in 2017 works, admitting that she once beat out a “far better” actress for a role because she has millions of followers on social media. “It’s not right, but it is part of the movie industry now,” she said.
Turner isn’t the only celeb to speak out about the injustice of being asked to shed pounds for a part, which, of course, disproportionately happens to women. Actresses from A-Listers to TV stars have had industry executives comment on their form — and, in some cases, write it into their contracts.
Even Oscar winners aren’t immune to the probing eyes of their bosses. Jennifer Lawrence revealed that she has been threatened with losing roles because of her appearance. “Somebody told me I was fat, that I was going to get fired if I didn’t lose a certain amount of weight,” she told Harper’s Bazaar UK. “They brought in pictures of me where I was basically naked, and told me to use them as motivation for my diet. It was just that.” But Lawrence has learned how to handle the criticism. “If anybody even tries to whisper the word ‘diet’, I’m like, ‘You can go f*** yourself,’” she said.
Margot Robbie has also reportedly been told to “lose 20 pounds if you want to be on the A-List.” Thankfully, she’s decided not to worry about anyone’s “advice.” Last year, she admitted she didn’t try to lose any weight for Tarzan because “It was [her] first time living in London properly and [she] wanted to try every pub,” she said. Clearly, Robbie has her priorities in order.
Even Karlie Kloss, an international supermodel, has dealt with conflicting reports on her figure. “I was called both too fat and too thin by a casting agent on the same day,” she said. “I don’t want to please anyone but myself.”
Apparently, male execs aren’t the only ones to blame here. In an interview about their new movie The Beguiled, Kirsten Dunst revealed that her longtime collaborator, director Sofia Coppola, asked her to lose weight for the film. “It’s so much harder when you’re 35 and hate working out,” said Dunst. And because the film was shot in rural Louisiana, there wasn’t much around in terms of healthy options. “I’m eating fried chicken and McDonald’s before work. So I’m like, ‘We have no options! I’m sorry I can’t lose weight for this role.'”
Pretty Little Liars star Ashley Benson gets “asked all the time to lose weight,” she told Health. Not only is she proud of her own size, but she also wants others to know that dress size shouldn’t matter. “With my stuff recently, it’s been, “You have to be skin and bones or you’re not getting it.” There was a point where it was getting to wear a size 2 was great. I’m a size 2, but I think that a size 4 is healthy. I think that all of these sizes are healthy.”
The rules are set at the top, which is why it’s so important that celebrities fight back when they’re told to alter their bodies. But for those times when you need a little real-world inspiration, there are plenty of voices out there looking to make body positivity a reality.
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