Jameela Jamil Defends Selena Gomez Amid Weight Gain Backlash
By Afouda Bamidele on January 21, 2023 at 9:30 PM EST
Jameela Jamil is sticking up for Selena Gomez after the latter recently faced criticism for gaining weight.
Several people appeared to be offended after the singer and actress walked the 2023 Golden Globes red carpet looking bigger than usual, and they trolled her for it on social media. Though the body shaming prompted Gomez to put out a video addressing it, Jamil has used her platform to add her voice to the fight, highlighting the needlessness for people to "justify their size."
Jameela Jamil Is Disappointed That Selena Gomez Has To Defend Her Weight Gain To Internet Trolls
Jamil has always been one to speak her mind and not back down from her stance, regardless of the conversation. The British star did so again after she noticed that internet trolls had had a field day going after Gomez when she showed off her new weight at the Golden Globes on January 11.
The former BBC Radio 1 presenter's rant began with her noting that the fact that Gomez felt attacked enough to "explain or defend her size" was "a sign that we are colossally FAILING as a society."
She added that it was needless for anybody to "justify their size" because "Nobody has any right to comment on or understand someone else's body." Jamil explained that with the "return of size zero" — thanks to "all these f**king celebrities taking diabetes meds to be skinny," the tradition of "women apologizing for their bodies" should not come back.
"The Good Place" actress finished her clapback by praising Gomez as a "gorgeous" woman who "deserves better than this." In fact, for the onscreen star, "We all deserve better than this."
The message was sent out in an Instagram Story a few days after Gomez herself had appeared on Instagram Live alongside her sister, Gracie Elliot Teefey. The 30-year-old said:
"I'm a little bit big right now because I enjoyed myself during the holidays," in a clip reshared on TikTok, before asking her little sibling, "Right?"
The nine-year-old responded, "Yeah," after which they began laughing, and she added, "But we don't care."
Before that, The Blast observed that one body shamer had told the "Only Murders in the Building" actress that her "body would be similar to ur moms" if she kept letting the weight fluctuation happen.
Another troll instructed, "Selena, time to get in shape." This would not be the first time the former Disney star would receive and respond to offensive remarks concerning her body.
In 2022, she shared a video on TikTok where she stated, "So I be trying to stay skinny, but I went to Jack in the Box, and I got four tacos, three egg rolls, onion rings, and a spicy chicken sandwich."
"But honestly, I don't care about my weight because people bitch about it anyway: 'You're too small.' 'You're too big.' 'That doesn't fit.' 'Meh meh meh meh.' B**ch, I am perfect the way I am. Moral of the story? Bye," Gomez chastized.
Jamil Wants Nothing To Do With Losing Weight With A Diabetes Drug
Jamil spoke up about the rise of celebrities and other individuals using Ozempic — a drug for people with type II diabetes as a rapid weight loss strategy. The Blast shared that the 36-year-old took to Instagram to post a statement that began:
"I have said what I have said about the potential harm of people using the diabetes medication for weight loss only. I fear for everyone in the next few years. Rich people are buying this stuff off prescription for upwards of 1000 dollars."
The "Legendary" judge added that the use of the injectable had become a "mainstream craze in Hollywood," resulting in actual diabetics "seeing shortages." She shared her hope that things would "not end the same way" they did when people were told that "opioids are safe" due to "little to no discussion of the side effects in any advertising online."
Jamil finished her rant, expressing, "I'm deeply concerned but I can't change any of your minds because fat phobia has our generation in a chokehold," Jamil concluded. A look below the write-up revealed that even though it had received almost 65,000 likes, there were no comments. She explained the decision for that in the caption, writing:
"I've turned my comments off because there is no point having this conversation any more. We will see what happens. I'm screaming into a void."
The "How to Build a Girl" star further explained that she hoped she was "worried for no reason" and that her doctors were wrong about what they told her about Ozempic. Ozempic became the go-to treatment for individuals who wanted to lose weight after it went viral in a social media post.
