Scrubs star Eliza Coupe is clapping back at fans who criticized her for her physical appearance at the world premiere of Netflix’s The Residence.
The 43-year-old actress posted a reel to her Instagram on March 22, captioned with various messages for her detractors. “Haters can hate, this is what I really look like,” the actress wrote, showing off candid moments from her life.
Highlights
- Eliza Coupe responds to critics of her appearance at Netflix's The Residence premiere.
- Fans expressed concern over Eliza's transformation, speculating substance abuse.
- Eliza revealed past struggles with body image, anxiety, and disordered eating.
- Fans expressed their support, congratulating the actress for standing up for herself.
Dressed in a plunging shimmering gold gown, knee-high boots, and a fur jacket, Coupe turned heads at the premiere, not just for her fashion choices, but for how “unrecognizable” she looked in netizen’s eyes.
Comments ranged from genuine expressions of concern to harsher accusations. For instance, one fan wrote, “She looks like she’s been filming The Walking Dead.”
Eliza Coupe clapped back at netizens who criticized her physical appearance at the premiere of Netflix’s The Residence
Image credits: Matt Winkelmeyer/Getty Images
Netizens had a hard time reconciling Coupe’s current version with the one they had grown accustomed to after Scrubs ended in 2010.
Her seemingly skinnier physique led viewers to speculate that the changes were the result of years of substance abuse.
“Wow, I can't believe how much she's changed in 15 years. She looks like an add*ct,” one user said. “She's using d***s. She looks messed up,” another replied.
Image credits: Savion Washington/Getty Images
Despite the criticism, Coupe’s post was met with an outpouring of support from fans who countered the negativity by flooding her comment section with positive messages.
“Yes! Show them! Absolute hit job on you for no reason,” a fan wrote, echoing similar sentiments from users who praised the actress for standing up for herself. “You look great. Can’t believe how things got twisted on you,” another added.
Coupe has spoken about her past battles with body image, anxiety, depression, and disordered eating
Image credits: Netflix
The actress’ now-controversial red carpet appearance worried her fans, who believe her physical transformation is actually the result of the personal struggles Coupe has talked about before.
The 43-year-old previously spoke about her past battles with body image and disordered eating, as well as deeper psychological turmoil that led her to experiment with unconventional healing methods such as the hallucinogenic psychoactive beverage aya**asca.
Image credits: Disney+
Following a divorce with superfood advocate Darin Olien in 2018, Coupe turned to the plant in a bid to cleanse herself of “toxic energies.” The experience was, in her words, “transformative,” but regardless of its effects, she stated that it was a one-and-done thing.
Image credits: Disney+
“'I was so broken, I couldn't get fixed enough for the relationship because I had damaged it with my own s***,” the actress said in a February appearance on the Funny Thing Is podcast.
She then went on to reveal her struggles with food and excessive drinking, a coping mechanism that she labeled her “dr*g of choice.”
She then went on to reveal her struggles with food and excessive drinking, a coping mechanism that she labeled her “dr*g of choice.”
The actress hinted at having suffered from bulimia, a psychiatric disorder commonly triggered by childhood trauma
Image credits: elizacoupe
Reaching rock bottom, the actress decided to enlist herself in a 12-step food program, which she strictly followed for seven years, weighing each meal meticulously.
“I am grateful for all the tools I learned from it,” the actress said, sharing further details about the process and explaining how, instead of instantly going away, her problems first transformed and evolved before being solved.
Image credits: elizacoupe
Food add*ction gave way to over-exercising, the actress shared, and eventually to what she referred to as “bulimia,” a potentially life-threatening condition in which a person binge eats in an effort to control symptoms of excessive anxiety and insecurity.
Labeled as a psychiatric disorder, it causes people to enter a state of ravenous eating that is immediately followed by periods of guilt and “purging” of the food.
According to studies, bulimia is caused by genetic and environmental factors, with childhood trauma being the most impactful.
The actress appears to have had a very productive 2025, with an upcoming book and a revitalized career
Image credits: elizacoupe
Coupe attributed her struggles with body image and eating to the pressures of conforming to a certain standard of beauty and thinness in the TV industry.
“I'm in such a high-stress job where women have to wear tight dresses all the time, and if I eat something that messes me up, I'll be so cripplingly uncomfortable that I can't go 12 more hours of shooting without freaking out,” she shared in a 2017 interview.
Nowadays, Coupe is experiencing a career renaissance, with outlets describing her participation in The Residence as her “biggest role since Scrubs.”
Image credits: elizacoupe
She’s also embracing her writing side, promoting the upcoming release of her self-help book Coyote Woman and the Odyssey of Soul Contracts, where she delves into topics of consciousness and self-discovery.
The book, she said, also serves as an attempt to “move on” from being defined by her life as an actress.
“I’ve been an actor. That has been my identity for so long. And what I have learned in my journey through this human experience...is that there is no such thing as ‘identity,’” she explained in a post.
“I wrote a book because I am also a writer. Another thing I enjoy and I am good at, and I have a lot to say.”
"So sad." Netizens took to social media to express their concern about the actress' appearance
