Entertainment

Hollywood’s Ozempic craze has ‘changed the narrative’ of body positivity as celebs are noticeably slimmer than ever

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The Ozempic trend sweeping Hollywood is fueling unrealistic body standards once again.

The popular diabetes-turned-weight-loss drug (and similar Semaglutide variations) have “definitely changed the narrative” when it comes to body positive messaging in the entertainment industry, Rutgers University psychology professor Dr. Charlotte Markey exclusively told Page Six Monday.

“It’s hard not to realize that celebrities like Mindy Kaling, who are very proudly body positive and not especially petite, are slimmed down,” Markey said of the actress, who claimed she lost 40 pounds by changing her eating habits after being accused of using Ozempic in 2022.

“We’re getting a lot less messaging about self-acceptance and the fact that people just naturally come in different body sizes and shapes,” Markey added.

The ”Body Image Book for Girls” author acknowledged that a person’s desire to be thin is nothing new. However, she believes society had made great strides in overcoming unhealthy beauty standards in recent years — until Ozempic came along.

“I think there was real progress [toward body positivity],” she explained. “I think that as people came to understand that restricting what you ate and different fad diets were not going to be effective long-term, people appreciated that self-acceptance was a much more reasonable and healthy option in terms of physical and psychological health.”

While Ozempic has made weight loss more attainable for celebrities, as well as for the masses, Markey isn’t sure how long the craze will endure.

“There’s a lot of attention devoted to weight loss medications and current trends surrounding them,” she said. “I don’t know if that will stick or not, but I think we’re going to hear more and more about undesirable side effects.”

While Markey emphasized the importance of body autonomy, she still has concerns, arguing that weight loss drugs are “essentially inducing disordered eating symptoms.”

“What weight loss drugs offer is sort of overruling what is normal hunger for a lot of people and making weight loss more possible,” she said.

The mental health expert advised consumers of pop culture to be weary of the various measures taken by A-listers to maintain their otherwise unattainable figures.

“We have to appreciate that most celebrities have access to resources that we do not, whether that is medications or personal trainers or personal chefs or whatever,” she said. “They are going to get much more hands-on support in achieving whatever look they want to and it’s also nearly a full-time job for many of them.”

She continued, “Celebrities are paid in part for how they look, so it’s important to keep that perspective and remember there’s something a little bit sad about being caught up in a world that does value your appearance.”

Several stars have historically gone to great lengths to lose weight due to the pressures of the industry.

In 2020, Jessica Simpson admitted to struggling with a decades-long addiction to diet pills after her record label wanted her to slim down. Earlier this year, Demi Moore also shared that she developed an eating disorder at one point after a producer told her to drop some pounds.

Meanwhile, rumors have swirled that Kim Kardashian — who once said she would eat poop if it made her look younger — turned to Ozempic to quickly lose weight before her 2022 Met Gala appearance. The theories are just speculation, however, as Kardashian has never publicly admitted to using the weight loss drug. She consistently works out with a personal trainer and follows a healthy diet.

Still, media consumers have become ultra-aware that famous faces were suddenly showing up to high-profile events looking more slender than ever with the development of weight loss drugs.

Ozempic and other weight loss drugs quickly became the go-to tactic for celebrities like Fat Joe, Kathy Bates, Macy Gray, Kelly Clarkson and Rebel Wilson.

In February 2024, Oprah Winfrey famously stepped down from her role at WeightWatchers after admitting to using a weight loss drug similar to Ozempic to trim her figure.

Despite the skinny aesthetic trending in Hollywood once again, Markey believes body image health is a concept that is here to stay.

“Body positivity is not over. Most people want to feel positive in existing versions of themselves and body positivity was never about seeking perfection. It was always about psychological health,” she argued.

“To say body positivity is over is to say we’ve given up on psychological health, and I don’t think any of us are ready to give that up.”

Entertainment

Author Cheryl Strayed reveals husband Brian Lindstrom has ‘serious, fatal illness’

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Author Cheryl Strayed has revealed that her husband, filmmaker Brian Lindstrom, has been diagnosed with a “serious, fatal illness.”

The 57-year-old writer, whose memoir “Wild” was adapted into a 2014 film starring Reese Witherspoon as Strayed, apologized to fans as she was forced to cancel her upcoming appearances amid her husband of 25 years’ health battle.

“My beloved husband Brian has been diagnosed with a serious, fatal illness,” she wrote on Instagram on Thursday.

“For that reason I had to cancel my writing workshop at Kripalu and also my appearance at Hunter College this week,” Strayed added.

“My apologies to those of you who made plans to be there. I simply cannot do anything but be with my family right now and see to our broken hearts.

“I ask that you hold us in your thoughts, prayers, light and love.”

Strayed said it may feel “emotionally dissonant” to see her posting “cheerful clips” from her podcast, “Mind Over Mountain,” amid the news.

“Those interviews, which I loved doing, were recorded previously, in easier, happier times,” she clarified.

Strayed is the author of “Torch,” “Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail,” “Tiny Beautiful Things: Advice on Love and Life from Dear Sugar” and “Brave Enough.”

“Tiny Beautiful Things,” based on her advice column, was adapted into a 2023 Hulu series starring Kathryn Hahn, while “Wild” earned Witherspoon an Academy Award nomination for her portrayal of Strayed during her Pacific Crest Trail hike.

Documentarian Lindstrom is known for directing 2013’s “Alien Boy: The Life and Death of James Chasse” and 2022’s “Lost Angel: The Genius of Judee Sill.”

He and Strayed also co-directed the 2019 film “We Are Forbidden.”

The couple met in 1995 and shares two adult children, Bobbi Strayed Lindstrom and Carver Strayed Lindstrom.

“Met this beautiful man 27 years ago today — literally half my lifetime ago,” Strayed wrote in a 2022 Facebook post.

“The next day I wrote in my journal: ‘I met a man named Brian Lindstrom last night. I don’t know who he is, but I think he’ll be someone to me.’ Little did I know how right I’d be. And how lucky.”

Strayed has frequently spoken about her husband’s support throughout her career.

“There’s no doing it without him,” she told The Great Discontent in 2012.

“When I was writing ‘Torch,’ he believed in me more than I believed in myself. He’s always, always, always been there for me, every time I needed him. He encourages me. He believes in me.”

“He’s an amazing person and an amazing filmmaker,” she added.

“Many people ask us if we’re jealous of each other or competitive because we’re both artists. We’re always mystified by that because we support each other in every way.”

Entertainment

Patriots QB Drake Maye finally breaks silence on Mike Vrabel, Dianna Russini photo scandal

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New England Patriots quarterback Drake Maye has finally broken his silence on coach Mike Vrabel’s photo scandal with sports reporter Dianna Russini.

“Yeah, we’re here for Coach, we love Coach,” the athlete told WHDH-TV 7News in Boston Wednesday. “What he does for us, what he’s done for us this past year, you can’t speak into words, and just thankful he’s our head coach.”

Maye, 23, added that although he knows Vrabel is “dealing with some stuff off the field and out of the coaching world,” he and his teammates are “here for him.”

“I know he’s gonna come back,” he shared.

The NFL star’s comment comes nearly a month after Page Six released exclusive photos of Vrabel, 50, and Russini, 43, holding hands and hugging at a luxury resort in Sedona, Arizona.

The coach and the sportscaster — who are both married to other people — insisted they were joined by other friends at the resort, despite multiple eyewitnesses disputing their claims.

“These photos show a completely innocent interaction and any suggestion otherwise is laughable. This doesn’t deserve any further response,” Vrabel told us in a statement at the time.

Russini said in her own statement, “The photos don’t represent the group of six people who were hanging out during the day. Like most journalists in the NFL, reporters interact with sources away from stadiums and other venues.”

Despite their denials, Russini was sidelined by the New York Times and then resigned from her position as senior NFL insider at the Athletic.

For his part, Vrabel announced that he would not be with his team for Day 3 of the 2026 NFL Draft to focus on family and personal matters and seek counseling.

A day later, Page Six published photos of Vrabel and Russini cozying up together at a dimly-lit New York City bar in 2020 — six years before their Arizona resort outing.

“They were kissing and they were all over each other,” an eyewitness told Page Six. “He had a ring on.”

At the time, Mike was already married to his wife, Jen Vrabel, while Russini was set to say “I do” to her now-husband, Shake Shack executive Kevin Goldschmidt, just six months later.

Following the release of the latest batch of photos, Russini deleted her social media accounts.

Page Six also exclusively reported that the pics prompted Mike and his wife, Jen, to have an emergency 24-hour marriage summit in Park City, Utah.

Mike and Russini each share two children with their respective spouses.

Entertainment

Keke Palmer, Zara Larsson, Teyana Taylor and more

The Billboard Women in Music Awards 2026 took place in Los Angeles Wednesday night and honored Teyana Taylor with the Visionary Award, Zara Larsson with the Breakthrough Award, and Tate McRae with the Hitmaker Award. See what stars like host Keke Palmer, Tyla, Dionne Warwick, and more wore on the red carpet ahead.