Yahoo Movies Kate Winslet Recalls Being Told to Settle for 'Fat Girl' Roles as Young Actress
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Kate Winslet is sharing what it was like to be body-shamed as a young, up-and-coming actress.
In a recent interview with The Sunday Times, the 47-year-old actress shared that she was called "blubber" when she was younger and often told that she should settle for "fat girl" roles. She compared it to the harshness of present-day social media, which can make it difficult for some women to be proud of their bodies.
"It can be extremely negative," Winslet told the outlet. "People are subject to scrutiny that is more than a young, vulnerable person can cope with."
She added that Hollywood, at least, is become more inclusive.
"But in the film industry it is really changing," she added. "When I was younger my agent would get calls saying, 'How's her weight?' I kid you not. So it's heartwarming that this has started to change."
Winslet also said that despite online criticism of women's bodies, women like her daughter Mia Threapleton, 22, are stronger than she was at that age.
"My daughter's generation has an ability to speak for themselves," Winslet explained. "They have already learned that they will be heard. Obviously not in every situation, but they know how to use their voice — especially young women. That's striking to me. When I was younger you spoke when spoken to. That is not the case now. Young women are stronger. And they're prouder of their bodies."
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After starring in Hamlet and Titanic in the late 90s, Winslet endured a barrage of body shaming from the tabloid media and people like Joan Rivers, who joked that "If Kate Winslet had dropped a few pounds, the Titanic would never have sunk."
She reflected on the scrutiny in February 2021, telling The Guardian, "In my 20s, people would talk about my weight a lot. And I would be called to comment on my physical self. Well, then I got this label of being ballsy and outspoken. No, I was just defending myself."
The mom of three said she's even looked back at articles written about her when she was in her late teens and early 20s.
"It was almost laughable how shocking, how critical, how straight-up cruel tabloid journalists were to me," she said at the time. "I was still figuring out who the hell I bloody well was! They would comment on my size, they'd estimate what I weighed, they'd print the supposed diet I was on. It was critical and horrible and so upsetting to read."
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Winslet admitted that the stories hurt her self-esteem.
"It damaged my confidence," she told the outlet. "I didn't want to go to Hollywood because I remember thinking, 'God, if this is what they're saying to me in England, then what will happen when I get there?' Also, it tampers with your evolving impression of what's beautiful, you know? I did feel very on my own. For the simple reason that nothing can really prepare you for… that."
The actress said she learned to stop caring about the criticism as soon as her daughter Mia was born in 2000.
"I had Mia when I was 25. And so all that s--t just kind of…evaporated," she said.
Winslet has said that the experience also taught her to raise Mia with a strong sense of body positivity.
"I stand in front of the mirror and say to Mia, 'We are so lucky we have a shape. We're so lucky we're curvy. We're so lucky that we've got good bums.' And she'll say, 'Mummy, I know, thank God,' " Winslet said in 2015. "It's paying off."
