The weight issue is often the big, fat elephant in any Hollywood room. It seems like actresses nowadays just keep getting thinner and thinner, yet very few people are talking about it.
Well, at a press conference for the new film "Valentine's Day" the other day, Hollywood "old guard" Shirley MacLaine put "new guard" starlets like Jessica Alba, Jessica Biel, and Jennifer Garner on the spot when it was her turn with the mic.
"I would like to ask all the women up here what they eat? I'd like to have a rundown," she said. "Do you diet all the time? You're looking so fabulous. Is it worth it?"
Everyone grew silent, as all eyes were on the uncomfortable-looking young starlets. Finally, Jennifer Garner made a meager attempt to defend her thin frame. "I'm nursing," Garner said. "When I'm done, I'll puff right back up." Then Julia Roberts, who apparently considers herself old and fat, joined team "old guard" with a sarcastic reply. "Good, alright, I'll stay tuned for that," she said.
Since practically half of the actresses in Hollywood appear in the film, I'm proud of Shirley for bringing it up at the press conference. It was definitely an uncomfortable moment, but perhaps an important one. Maybe the only way the industry will change is if the women in Hollywood, young and old, come together to take responsibility and decide that they will no longer buy into thin-sanity.
Shirley MacLaine raises a really good question: Is it really worth it to be so thin? And who is it for?
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