Entertainment
Kate Winslet recalls being labelled ‘outspoke and ballsy’ for ‘defending her weight’ during Titanic era
Kate Winslet has become known for her iconic role as Rose in 1998 movie Titanic, but following the film’s success, she remembers being cruelly targeted over her weight.
The actress, 45, was just 21 years old when she filmed the classic and she recalls continuously being asked about her weight – only for her to be labelled ‘ballsy and outspoken’ when she then defended her physical appearance.
Speaking in a new interview with The Guardian, Kate, who has said she felt bullied by the physical scrutiny she faced in the spotlight, explained: ‘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.’
Kate said it was ‘almost laughable’ how ‘shocking, critical and cruel’ the comments about her weight were in the media, especially given she was so young.
‘I was still figuring out who the hell I bloody 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,’ she recalled.
Looking back at old coverage of herself, Kate said she was ‘moved’ by how different things are now and explained that having a child helped her to shrug off her critics
‘It damaged my confidence. 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,’ Kate said.
‘I did feel very on my own. For the simple treason that nothing can really prepare you for that, but then of course, I had Mia when I was 25… so all that sh*t just kind of evaporated.’
Titanic arguable turned Oscar-winner Kate and her co-star Leonardo DiCarprio into worldwide stars, but instead of chasing after bigger roles following the movie’s release, Kate backed away from Hollywood.
‘I was scared of Hollywood. A big, scary place, where everyone had to be thin and look a certain way. And I knew that I did not look that way or feel like I fit there, so if I was ever going to belong, I had to earn my place,’ Kate explained in a chat with LA Times.
She added of winning the role of Rose: ‘I was the overweight girl who would always be at the end of the line.
‘Because my name was W, sometimes I wouldn’t even get in the door of the audition because they’d run out of time… and I was in Titanic – it’s mad.’
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