Celebrity red carpet appearances at the SAG Awards have reignited concerns about their noticeably slimmer figures and fueled speculation over the use of Ozempic, the weight loss medication popular among Hollywood stars.
The awards, given by the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, honor the most outstanding performances in film and television.
Highlights
- The SAG Awards red carpet reignited concerns over celebrities' slimmer figures, with many attributing the changes to Ozempic.
- Stars like Demi Moore, Selena Gomez, and Ariana Grande sparked health concerns among fans.
- Kathy Bates said she lost 20 lbs (approx 9 kg.) after taking Ozempic.
Unlike the Oscars and Golden Globes, the SAG Awards also recognize the best casts in movies and TV series, presenting ensemble awards in addition to individual accolades.
Before receiving the prestigious honors, stars walked the red carpet outside the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, drawing attention to their striking body transformations.
Image credits: clubheartbreak
One of them was Demi Moore, who took home the Best Actress award for her role in The Substance. In the body horror film, she plays a fading Hollywood icon who takes a black market serum to create a youthful version of herself.
Demi's outfit for the evening—a strapless black dress featuring a leather top and a textured skirt—highlighted her slim collarbones, shoulders, and arms.
"The irony of her starring in the substance (an entire movie dedicated to beauty standards) and then popping out looking emaciated was a..choice," wrote a Redditor under a post titled "Demi Moore Ozempic final boss at the SAG Awards."
"Do you think this is the result of a mentally well person? This looks like someone who is struggling," another user noted.
Image credits: deadline
"Okay, and what if the weight loss was due to an ED relapse? Or extreme stress. She can make a movie like The Substance and still be directly affected by societal expectations of women in Hollywood," countered a third. "In fact, that kind of just speaks more to the validity of the movie anyway."
The actress has previously opened up about her "obsession" over her appearance for her movie roles, which began after filming 1992's A Few Good Men.
"I didn't feel like I could stop exercising," she shared in her 2019 memoir Inside Out.
"[I was] dieting and exercising in a very obsessive-compulsive way... I changed my body over multiple times but wasn't really myself."
People suspect Demi Moore, who won Best Actress for The Substance, took the medication to look slimmer
Image credits: Neilson Barnard/Getty Images
After five years, Demi decided to ease up on her strict exercise regime and make peace with her body.
"I just started to ask to be my natural size because I didn't know what it was. I literally couldn't go in a gym. I couldn't control food in that way," she told The New York Times last September about her unhealthy obsession with her image.
While filming The Substance, the 62-year-old star contracted shingles, a painful rash illness she said made her lose 20 pounds (approx. 9 kg).
Georgina Chapman was among the stars who sparked health concerns for her hollow cheeks and small frame
Image credits: Emma McIntyre/WireImage/Getty Images
Ariana Grande also sparked health concerns due to her hollow cheeks, visible collarbones, and slim shoulders.
The singer and actress was nominated for Outstanding Performance by a Female Actor in a Supporting Role for Wicked, but the award went to Zoe Saldaña for Emilia Pérez.
"She is emaciated and needs help," one concerned fan wrote in reaction to her red carpet photos, while another said, "There is definitely something wrong! She looks skinner and skinner!"
A former colleague of Ariana's told Page Six that her physically demanding schedule has taken a toll on her health.
"It's that much harder to take care of yourself — mentally as well as physically," they said.
Kathy Bates said the medication helped her lose 20 lbs (approx. 9 kg), and her weight loss was also supported by changes to her lifestyle and diet
Image credits: Amy Sussman/Getty Images
"I don't even think your body knows when it needs to eat. You're sleeping when you're supposed to be up, and you're up when you're supposed to be sleeping.
"Between that, and the fashion women deal with – the hair, the makeup, and the nails – it's nonstop running. It's superhuman."
Kathy Bates' body transformation didn't go unnoticed at the awards show. The star, who opted for an elegant black suit, was nominated for her roles in the HBO film The Great Lillian Hall and the CBS show Matlock.
Kathy has attributed part of her weight loss to Ozempic, telling People that the medication helped her lose 20 lbs (approx. 9 kg).
Addressing speculation about her Ozempic use, she clarified that her seven-year weight loss journey—during which she shed a total of 100 pounds (approx. 45kg)—was also the result of changes to her lifestyle and diet.
Ariana Grande is also believed to have used Ozempic, though the Wicked star has never confirmed these claims
Image credits: Variety
Image credits: Amy Sussman/Getty Images
"There's been a lot of talk that I just was able to do this because of Ozempic. But I have to impress upon people out there that this was hard work for me, especially during the pandemic. It's very hard to say you've had enough," she shared.
"I used to eat terribly: burgers and Cokes and pizza."
The Oscar winner's wake-up call came in 2017 when she was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes.
"I ate because I was afraid, and I ate because it was a FU to my self-esteem.
"[Diabetes] runs in my family, and I'd seen what my father had gone through. He had had a leg amputation. One of my sisters is dealing with it very seriously, and it terrified me. It scared me straight."
Selena Gomez shared that her weight fluctuations are due to her lupus medication, which causes water retention
Image credits: angelicazdzienicki
Image credits: Christopher Polk/Variety/Getty Images
Selena Gomez, nominated in the Outstanding Performance by a Cast category for Emilia Pérez and Only Murders in the Building, walked the red carpet looking noticeably slimmer, with one fan commenting, "Ozempic is a hell of a dr*g."
"Damn she's lost a loot of weight!" another Redditor wrote.
Despite the Ozempic claims, the Texas native previously explained that her weight fluctuations are the result of her lupus medication, which causes water retention.
Supermodel Brooke Shields also faced Ozempic speculation
Image credits: Emma McIntyre/WireImage/Getty Images
"Yeah, maybe we have days where we feel like sh*t, but I would much rather be healthy and take care of myself. My medications are important, and I believe they are what helps me," she expressed.
Stars like Brooke Shields, Georgina Chapman, and Sheryl Lee Ralph also faced Ozempic speculation due to their slender frames at the ceremony.
Ozempic—the commercial name for semaglutide—is an injectable medication used for the treatment of type 2 diabetes and has not received FDA approval for external purposes.
Wegovy, the same semaglutide medication, has been FDA-approved for weight loss in individuals with obesity who have at least one weight-related condition (e.g., high blood pressure, Type 2 diabetes.)
Sheryl Lee Ralph appeared noticeably slimmer at the awards show
Image credits: PopBase
Both Wegovy and Ozempic mimic the hormone GLP-1, “stimulating insulin release by the pancreas, lowering blood sugar, reducing appetite in the brain, slowing digestion in the gut, and lowering blood pressure in the heart,” Dr. Bernie Garrett from the University of British Columbia told Bored Panda.
“These help regulate blood sugar levels by slowing digestion, making people feel fuller for longer and reducing appetite.”
Compared to Ozempic, Wegovy has a slightly higher approved dose (Ozempic-max 2mg, Wegovy-max 2.4mg), explained Areesha Moiz from McGill University’s Division of Experimental Medicine.
“The two are marketed under distinct brand names to differentiate between their indications (Ozempic-T2DM, WeGovy-Overweight/obesity) and to address insurance coverage considerations for patients and healthcare providers.”
Image credits: Frazer Harrison/WireImage/Getty Images
GLP-1 agonists are “powerful weight-loss tools, though their long-term impacts are still being explored,” Moiz notes in her study.
Off-label prescriptions don’t mean that people with Type 2 diabetes will be left without their medication. “There were drug shortages reported in the past, but these have now been resolved,” she told Bored Panda.
According to Harvard Health, gastrointestinal symptoms — nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, and constipation — are the most common side effects of GLP-1 medications.
Though rare, other reported side effects of Ozempic include biliary disorders and pancreatitis.
In terms of physical appearance, rapid weight loss can cause what is known as the "Ozempic face," where skin on the face sags and wrinkles.
The stars' slim figures at the ceremony continued to spark heated debates about Ozempic
