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Original poster

Are most actresses very very slim in real life?

883 replies

Mitford1789 · 04/06/2021 22:38

I saw a well known actress a few days ago, standing behind her in the queue for a coffee. She was dressed down, however was clearly very pretty in person. However I was taken aback by how slim she was. I would say she was slightly taller than average, not a tiny person if you know what I mean. But so so slim. Do you think most famous actresses/singers etc are like this? Maybe I’m very naive.

OP posts:
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5
FritataPatate · 05/06/2021 08:25

I can't see Carey Mulligan on screen without worrying about how thin she is.
According to this thread, IRL she will look even 10 pounds lighter Shock Sad

coogee · 05/06/2021 08:27

Why do people pretend people don't restrict or have disordered eating?
For the vast majority of people, it' is necessary to restrict to some degree to maintain a healthy weight.

Peanutbutterandbananatoastie · 05/06/2021 08:28

@Hufflepuffsunite

I saw Lady Gaga live a good few years ago now. We were standing and had got there early so were at the front (it was great!) and could see her clearly. She was petite and slender, very toned and looked fantastic in an array of different outfits throughout the show. I'm not great at guessing clothes sizes but I was an 8-10 at the time and she was definitely significantly smaller than me so I'm going to say she looked a size 4-6. Well, the next day, the Daily Fail reported on the exact same concert, with barbed comments such as "a fuller figured Gaga took the stage" and "proudly sporting her new curves". The accompanying photos made her look squat and heavy with large thighs and rolls of fat on her belly. I know photos can be unflattering but I had photos too and it looked like a different person. I'm convinced they edited the photos to make her look worse - I mean, she didn't have any fat on her, let alone enough to form a roll! I've not read the Daily Fail since. Anyone who saw those photos would have thought she was a bit overweight and she wasn't, she was tiny!
Jessica Simpson apparently wrote in her book (I haven’t actually read it 😁) that paparazzi would always take pictures of her from below and looking up to make her belly and chin look bigger, and how hard it was to see those pictures when she was already working as hard as she could to stay thin.
DinosaurDiana · 05/06/2021 08:28

I’ve always assumed they took drugs to stay slim.

SquirrelFan · 05/06/2021 08:30

I think the lollipop head thing is real-was watching a film about filmmaking once and an actor (playing a director) said "she's good - she's got a big head, it'll look good on camera." Maybe it has something to do with the face being where quite a lot of the "acting" happens? Proportionately you need to be able to see it even when the camera isn't zoomed in...

Angelica789 · 05/06/2021 08:32

Someone I know with a long term eating disorder is now suffering from many health issues in her 60s. She breaks bones easily among other things.

Undereating over a long time period is really bad for you.

Morgan12 · 05/06/2021 08:32

The friends episode where Joey is trying to undo Rachels bra always makes me uncomfortable because his hands look so huge on Jennifer Anistons back. She looks like a child next to him.

It's actually so sad for them. I know their millions will make it up somewhat but God they must be starving. I'd be miserable.

MadameMinimes · 05/06/2021 08:33

I once saw Lily Cole up close. She was absolutely magnetic. Vey tall, very thin, very beautiful. She stood out immediately as different. I know plenty of tall, slim people but her proportions were well outside of what we usually mean when we say “tall and slim”. I wouldn’t say she looked emaciated or anything like that, but her whole build really was out-of-the-ordinary.

MarshaBradyo · 05/06/2021 08:34

@MadameMinimes

I once saw Lily Cole up close. She was absolutely magnetic. Vey tall, very thin, very beautiful. She stood out immediately as different. I know plenty of tall, slim people but her proportions were well outside of what we usually mean when we say “tall and slim”. I wouldn’t say she looked emaciated or anything like that, but her whole build really was out-of-the-ordinary.
Yes me too, I saw her once at my gym and I really thought the same
lljkk · 05/06/2021 08:34

I know someone who goes on tv often (covid related).
He looks thinner on tv than in person, imho!!

I don't see famous people IRL so mostly no idea...

The only 3 I can think of I've seen in the flesh were David Cameron, Vince Campbell (tall) & Stephen Frye. They seemed about the same as on TV, but all 3 were in suits which hide body shape well.

kateluvscats · 05/06/2021 08:36

I watched Katherine Kelly on tv recently, fabulous actress but very thin on screen, can't imagine how tiny she must be in real life.

JinglingHellsBells · 05/06/2021 08:37

I suspect it's not that many actresses are thin but that most people now are overweight, so the perception of 'normal' has changed.

If you look back at films and newsreels from the 1940s and 50s when my mum was young, almost everyone was slim.

Also, we don't actually see 'most actresses'. You see those on TV and in films but there are many actresses or actors working in the theatre or on radio who aren't always on TV.

I've met a number of very famous actors and actresses over the years including a 'mum at the school gate' and they were slim but not excessively so.

reallyreallyborednow · 05/06/2021 08:38

*Well if they can have kids, they can’t be too thin as the body shuts down fertility first.

Most of the women mentioned here have had kids just fine*

An increasing amount of celebs are having babies via surrogate now though…

ClaireEclair · 05/06/2021 08:41

@Dasher789

About 10 years ago , I saw Kiera Knighly in the street. I didnt notice her height too much but she looked like a different species. Her face was perfect, the most beautiful face I have ever seen. She always looks thin but irl she was very thin and just had this prominent face. It was hard not to just stare. I am not even particularly a fan of hers but wow.
I also saw Kiera about 10 years ago and I was also stunned by how beautiful she is and how thin she is! We walked past each other on a quiet road and she noticed me staring and I think I made her uncomfortable lol, so had to stop.

Have also met Fiona Bruce and Drew Barrymore. Drew is tiny as people have mentioned. Fiona was very tall and slim. Carey Mulligan is also teeny tiny.

Morgan12 · 05/06/2021 08:42

Considering your height no they probably won't be shocked.

What is shocking about these actresses appearances is that they aren't very small and nor are they naturally so slim.

As many previous posts have said they look almost distorted and their heads look like they belong on a different body. Hence people being shocked.

It's fairly obvious what people meant by this tbh. Did you just want people to know your were thin?

LapinR0se · 05/06/2021 08:43

I saw Minnie driver in a coffee place in NY. She was absolutely gaunt

HeadNorth · 05/06/2021 08:46

An increasing amount of celebs are having babies via surrogate now though…

I think that is general due to age, though. Victoria Beckham didn't wait until her 50s to start a family and despite her despised slim figure seemed to conceive and bear her children just fine. Also, she has stayed slim, rather than an unhealthy yo-yoing weight. It is not necessarily unhealthy to be slim, you know. The BMI is a range and the lower end of healthy is very slim, but still healthy. I am 5 foot 1 inch and could weigh between 7st 5lbs and 9st 6lbs and still be a healthy weight. I would look very different at the extreme top and bottom of a healthy weight, but my weight itself would be just as healthy at either end.

Obesity is a major health issue in this country, not slimness, so perhaps we could learn from adult women who are able to stay slim, not slag them off and criticise their looks.

user1471604848 · 05/06/2021 08:47

A few years ago I met Monica Cruz (Penelope's sister - she's also a famous actress in Spain).

My first thought was "wow, she's so beautiful", and she was TINY and so slim.

Marguerite2000 · 05/06/2021 08:51

I suspect that it's not that many actresses are thin but that most people now are overweighf, so the perception of normal has changed

No I don't think this is true. I grew up in the '70s, pre 'obesity epidemic' and we still noticed people like Olivia Newton John (in Grease) being exceptionally thin.

dorangme · 05/06/2021 08:57

Obesity is a major health issue in this country, not slimness, so perhaps we could learn from adult women who are able to stay slim, not slag them off and criticise their looks.

🤔

Thewinterofdiscontent · 05/06/2021 08:57

Well if they can have kids, they can’t be too thin as the body shuts down fertility first.

Which sounds reliable but considering how many women still give birth in countries where food is scarce, clearly the threshold is low.

sadperson16 · 05/06/2021 08:59

I think its terribly sad that women have to starve themselves.
Didn't Joanna Lumley say she " doesn't do food"

I would love to see the whole beautiful range of shapes and sizes in the media, including some older post menopausal bodies that aren't size 4.

Applesonthelawn · 05/06/2021 08:59

Emma Thompson looks normal, slim and healthy in real life.

dorangme · 05/06/2021 09:00

For the vast majority of people, it' is necessary to restrict to some degree to maintain a healthy weight.

So my question remains, why do people pretend that this doesn't happen?

BakedTattie · 05/06/2021 09:01

Slightly off topic - but I’ve always wondered how these slim female celebs have no abdomen ‘pouch’ you know that wee squishy bit below your belly button that’s supposed to cushion your reproductive organs? Most of them don’t seem to have it. Is this from sit ups? Surgery? Born that way ?