Prattusa Mallik
Actress Millie Bobby Brown, who began acting aged ten, took to Instagram to criticise media scrutiny of her appearance. She highlighted articles by journalists, including women, who questioned the transformation of her body and face. Millie asked why people cannot accept her natural growth, labelling the commentary ‘bullying’. “The fact that adult writers are spending their time dissecting my face, my body, my choices, it’s disturbing,” she said.
However, the Stranger Things star isn’t the first celebrity who has addressed such a concern in the last few years. Here are five times popular figures in the entertainment industry shut down trolls for body shaming.
Following her comeback in 2021, Adele opened up about how she had been under constant scrutiny of media and her followers who have left no stone unturned to criticise her body. She said, “People have been talking about my body for 12 years. They used to talk about it before I lost weight. But yeah, whatever, I don’t care.”
The singer, too, had people talk about her transformation, often in news stories that she deemed fake. Adele is perhaps one of the very few stars who have spoken out publicly about media “capitalising” on her weight–loss journey.
“I think it was right after I got out of rehab in 2018. I saw an article somewhere that said I was morbidly obese. And that is the most triggering thing that you could possibly write about somebody with an eating disorder,” the musician was quoted saying in a 2021 interview.
The actor-producer had revealed in a television interview that a co-star of hers from The Office had suggested that she should lose 15 pounds. “This is my greatest insecurity and someone just called it out. It’s really devastating,” she said.
Addressing netizens who body shame her, the actress took to Instagram in 2022. “So just a thing – if you have an opinion about my body please, please don’t share it with me. Most people are being nice and not trying to be offensive but I am just one real life human being and it’s really hard to take the weight of thousands of opinions on how you look being sent directly to you every day. If you have an opinion about me that’s ok, I understand I’m on TV and that people will have things to think and say but I beg you not to send it to me directly,” the Bridgerton star said.
Perhaps a little humour never goes out of style! The singer, who has always championed body positivity, was quoted cheekily remarking in 2022, “So I be trying to stay skinny, but I went to Jack in the Box and I got four tacos, three egg rolls, onion rings and a spicy chicken sandwich. But honestly, I don’t care about my weight because people b**ch about it anyway. ‘You’re too small.’ ‘You’re too big.’ ‘That doesn’t fit.’ ‘Meh meh meh’. B**ch, I am perfect the way I am. Moral of this story? Bye!”