When an actress is told to lose weight for a role, rarely is it a welcome request. But when Chrissy Metz was asked to shed a few pounds for her role on NBC's breakout drama This Is Us, she happily obliged, according to her interview with TV Line—even calling the contractual requirement a "win-win." The pressure the industry puts on women to be physically "perfect" is ridiculously well documented, so before you jump to conclusions, hear the girl out.
If you're unfamiliar with the show—and if you haven't seen it, you need to start watching it now because it's amazing—"This Is Us" follows protagonist Kate, a plus-size woman who joins an Overeaters Anonymous–like support group after suffering an emotional breakdown on her thirty-sixth birthday. The series follows the highs and lows of her ensuing journey in a rare, beautifully honest portrayal of life as a struggling food addict. In order to accurately portray Kate's weight-loss progress on-screen, Metz agreed to shed pounds offscreen, welcoming the opportunity to get in better shape.
"In our contract, it did say that would be a part of it, to lose the weight in the trajectory of the character as she comes to find herself," the actress recently told TV Line. "That was a win-win for me. Because it's one thing to try to do it on your own. But as human beings, it's an ego thing: We're more likely to do something for someone else." The 36-year-old actress called the contractual requirement a "different kind of motivation," admitting, "I was excited about it."
More on body positivity:
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Of course, Chrissy Metz's commitment to lose weight isn't just for the role; nor, she insists, is it the product of the pressures of fame and life in the public's scrutinizing eye. "Whether or not I lose weight or stay the same, it's purely a choice of mine for health," Metz told TV Line. "Not because I think that plus size, curvy, voluptuous, big bodies aren’t attractive—because I think they’re awesome and sexy." So basically, no one tweet her and tell her she's conforming to societal pressure. "I'm not selling out the big girls," she added. "I don't do that. That's not me." And that's why we're such big Chrissy fans.
Now, learn more about curvy model Paloma Elsesser:
