Emma Thompson says anorexia in Hollywood is “getting worse”
We’ve all heard about the intense body image pressures placed on Hollywood actresses (even when it jeopardizes their health), so needless to say, we were pretty heartbroken to hear the following.
During an interview with the Swedish talk show Skavlan, Emma Thompson said anorexia among actresses is getting worse, and she even threatened to quit a movie when her costar — another woman, of course — was asked to lose weight. Not only is that an offensive and disrespectful request to ask of anyone, but it’s so telling of how the film industry promotes unrealistic and absurd standards of beauty.
In the interview, Thompson referred to weight loss pressures as an “evil” problem that’s getting worse.
“The anorexia, there’s so many kids, girls and boys now, and actresses who are very, very thin into their 30s, who simply don’t eat. They don’t eat! Sometimes there are just some subjects that you absolutely have to make noise about because it’s so tedious and it’s gone on and on.”
Even though it’s tough to talk about, it’s so incredibly necessary to be armed with information.
Anorexia is serious and complicated issue that affects women and men (and not just actors in Hollywood) and can be detrimental and devastating to one’s health. As far as actors being asked to lose weight for a role, this is an unfair and unsafe practice that needs to stop. “There was a wonderful actress in a film I did called Brideshead Revisited and the producer said to her, ‘Would you lose some weight?’ and she was exquisite,” Thompson recalled.
“If you speak to her about this again on any level I will leave this picture,”
she said she told the producer. “You are never to do that.'”
We’re so glad that Thompson refused to tolerate this behavior and stood up for her younger costar (who likely had less clout than she did), because the more people who raise awareness about this, the more normalized speaking up will become.
Let’s work on crushing this problem together by talking about it often, sharing our experiences, and supporting all bodies.
As Emma Thompson says, it’s incredibly important to make “noise” about these things.
