Actress Rebel Wilson is opening up about her weight loss journey and why her Pitch Perfect contract left her typecast as the “fat, funny friend.”
A-ca-believe it!
Wilson is known for portraying the hilarious a-cappella singer Fat Amy in Universal Pictures’ Pitch Perfect films. But during her appearance on Alex Cooper’s Call Her Daddy podcast, Wilson shocked listeners when she revealed how her weight tied into her contract for the films. According to the actress, she had to maintain her current size for filming.
Related | Do the ‘Scream VI’ Posters Reveal the New Killer?
“I couldn’t lose a massive amount of weight because it was in the contracts for that movie,” Wilson said. “You can’t lose, I think, it’s not more than 10 pounds or gain more than 10 pounds. You have to kind of stay at the weight. It’s in your contract.”
Pitch Perfect premiered in theaters in 2012, followed by two sequel films – the last of which premiered in 2017. Even though Wilson had thoughts about losing weight, she said she waited until filming seemed like it was over.
View this post on Instagram
Playing the “Fat, Funny Friend”
The 42-year-old actress also spoke about being typecast in Hollywood because of her size.
“I was stereotyped in playing that fat, funny friend, which is so hard because I love those roles. I love doing the roles, and I love those characters.” However, Wilson was ready to take on new challenges.
“I did want to do more things, but I felt like being the bigger girl, you’re just more pigeonholed.” In addition to Pitch Perfect, Wilson also played similar roles in Bridesmaids and How to Be Single.
Related | Lady Gaga Reveals First Look as Harley Quinn in ‘Joker’ Sequel
Wilson Documents Her Weight Loss Journey Online
Over the last few years, Wilson has lost 80 pounds and has been sharing her weight loss journey with her Instagram followers. She said she gained 100 pounds in college due to her polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS), and did not consider losing weight until she thought about being a mother.
“I went to see a fertility doctor and he was like, ‘Well, you’d have a much better chance with fertility if you were healthier,'” Wilson continued. “And I was like, ‘Oh my God, what’s he talking about?’ Because my life is like a Lizzo song, where I’m like bad b—- o’clock. But then I have this stranger saying, ‘Look at you, you’re not healthy.’ It really hit me hard because I was living this fantastic bigger life and didn’t have any serious diseases or anything.”
In November 2022, Wilson welcomed a baby girl to the world via surrogacy that she is raising alongside her partner Ramona Agruma. “I can’t even describe the love I have for her. She’s a beautiful miracle!” Wilson wrote on Instagram.
View this post on Instagram
Rebel Wilson Said She Lacked Support on Her Journey
This is not the first time the actress has spoken about her desire to lose weight. In 2021, she told BBC News that she lacked support from her inner circle to begin her journey. Unfortunately, most of the feedback was in response to her career and the lost opportunities she could face if she lost weight.
“I got a lot of pushback from my own team actually, here in Hollywood, when I said ‘Okay, I’m going to do this year of health, I feel like I’m really gonna physically transform and change my life,'” Wilson said.
“And they were like, ‘Why? Why would you wanna do that?’ Because I was earning millions of dollars being the funny fat girl and being that person.”
The actress has also addressed her “emotional eating habits” and said she decided to lose weight for her health, not for her image.
“People are beautiful at any shape or size, and I genuinely believe that. I just got to a point where I knew deep inside that I was engaging in some activities that were unhealthy.”
View this post on Instagram