**Kate Winslet Opens Up About Weight Shaming in the Entertainment Industry**
*Dec. 22, 2025, Published 6:45 p.m. ET*
Oscar-winning actress Kate Winslet has revealed the harsh realities of weight shaming in the entertainment industry. In an exclusive interview with RadarOnline.com, the 50-year-old shared how, as a young girl breaking into acting, she was once told she would only be offered “fat girl parts.”
Winslet began acting at the age of 11 and recounted a painful moment involving a drama teacher who made the “appalling” prediction that she would struggle to land decent roles unless she was willing to settle for characters labeled as “fat.”
>”I was a little bit stocky,” Winslet admitted during an upcoming appearance on BBC Radio 4’s *Desert Island Discs*.
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>”When I started taking acting seriously and got a child agent, I vividly remember a drama teacher saying to me, ‘Well, darling, you’ll have a career if you’re ready to settle for the fat girl parts.'”
Proudly, the *Titanic* star responded, “Look at me now,” but also reflected on how hurtful those early words were. “That wasn’t very nice, was it? It’s appalling the things people say to children.”
### Childhood Bullying and Its Impact
Winslet also opened up about the bullying she endured in grade school because of her weight.
>”I had a lot of kids tease me at primary school,” she shared heartbreakingly. “They would call me blubber. I wasn’t even overweight. I just had stocky thighs, and they would lock me in the art cupboard and say, ‘Blubber’s blubbing in the art cupboard,’ and things like that.”
The pain from this bullying led Winslet to start dieting in her teen years—a decision she now deeply regrets.
>”It’s the only thing in my life I really regret because long-term, not eating properly or panicking about what I’d eaten, or waking up and wondering if I looked fatter— that went on for a really long time,” she confessed.
### Developing a Thick Skin
The relentless teasing fueled Winslet’s determination to succeed in acting.
>”I learned to have a pretty thick skin fairly early on,” the *The Reader* star admitted. “At the time, I threw myself into my theater company and my creative world outside school, making those school bullies as insignificant as possible. I wouldn’t let them ruin the trajectory I was determined to follow.”
### The Weight Comments Have Never Stopped
Even after the December 1997 release of *Titanic* catapulted her to global stardom, the cruel commentary on Winslet’s weight persisted.
>”It was almost laughable how shocking and cruel tabloid journalists were to me,” she said in a 2021 interview. “I was still figuring out who the h— I b—– well was! They would comment on my size, estimate my weight, and print supposed diet rumors. It was horrible and upsetting.”
Her Emmy-winning role in HBO’s 2021 limited series *Mare of Easttown* also sparked weight-focused scrutiny.
>”The discussion about how Mare looked blew my mind,” Winslet revealed.
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>”People asked, ‘Did she gain weight? Didn’t she look frumpy? Wasn’t that brave of her?’ But why should that be brave? I suppose because it’s not how leading actresses are usually represented.”
Winslet remains hopeful for change, saying, “Maybe *Mare* will be the tipping point, and we’ll stop scrutinizing women on screen quite so much.”
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Kate Winslet’s candid reflections highlight the ongoing challenges women face in the entertainment industry regarding body image, calling attention to the need for greater acceptance and change.
https://radaronline.com/p/kate-winslet-fat-girl-drama-teacher-early-career/