Goodbye movies: Why is everyone angry over Renée Zellweger’s new role?
A movie with Renée Zellweger always seems to be a good pick when it comes to crowd pleasers. But could the new series she’s currently filming change the actress’s shiny reputation? It seems like it: her latest gig is causing some serious controversy from activists and folks from all over social media, as new pics of her filming The Thing About Pam – her latest TV show on NBC – have been going around the web.
Since then, the exclusive behind-the-scenes pics of Renée Zellweger on the set of The Thing About Pam NBC series have been making tons of people angry. Is the acclaimed actress losing fans? Some people are branding these photos as “fatphobic”, but just why is the star receiving so much heat and critique? Let’s take a look at the deets on why Renée Zellweger has been getting so much hate.
Renée Zellweger on the set of ‘The Thing About Pam,’ based on the murder of Betsy Faria, which resulted in her husband’s conviction.
He always insisted that he did not kill her, and his conviction was later overturned, exposing a diabolical scheme involving Pam Hupp (Zellweger). https://t.co/YIrEPLMJtO
— Film Updates (@FilmUpdates) October 6, 2021
True crime and Renée Zellweger?
If you ever expected Renée Zellwegger to break into the true crime genre, you probably thought she’d do it with a movie. However, earlier this week, fans got a first look at the actress dressed up in costume for her role in the upcoming true crime NBC TV series called The Thing About Pam. The actress had been filming on set in New Orleans, Louisiana, and, in exclusive behind-the-scenes pics, she looks almost unrecognizable.
Thus, Renée Zellweger is making her true crime entrance not with a movie but with a TV series, holding a super-size soda cup that reads “Chill Chugz” while dressed in a puffy white jacket and fur-lined snow boots, all on a snowy set. The actress also wore very oversized jeans, but the total fashion disaster is not what fans of the star are so upset about, but rather the fact that she also was seen dressed in a very apparent fat suit.
Yes, the fifty-two-year-old actress had to wear a fat suit for her role, and it was obvious she had facial prosthetics as well. She also had a strawberry-blonde bob for her hairstyle. Since the pics of her on set for the series have been shared with the public, she has received a bit of hate from some fans for her decision to star in a role that would require her to wear a fatsuit, and the pics were described as “damaging” & “fatphobic”.
The criticism she has received so far
Plus-size writer Sarah Alexander explained to Metro that “‘A fat suit has always been a way of mocking fat people no matter who wears it, even if it is for an acting role. Actors that have previously worn them (Gwyneth Paltrow, Sarah Paulson) have admitted they regret their choice in wearing one and that it causes harm” She said the suit was “damaging, fatphobic and potentially triggering to other plus-size people”.
Sarah Alexander also added that “There are plenty of incredibly talented plus-size actresses that could have been hired for the role instead of Zellweger. Why were they overlooked and a fat suit considered a viable option? It seems like she has not considered the effects this will have on fat people, and is unaware and/or naive that she is adding to the stigma fat people already face on a daily basis”.
Renée Zellweger’s role in The Thing About Pam is the role of Pam Hupp, who is actually serving a life-sentence in prison for murdering Louis Gumpenberger back in 2016 in her Missouri home. The story of Pam Hupp is one that has been widely discussed by true crime fanatics, and is described as “stranger than fiction” by NBCUniversal chairman Susan Rovner.
