Gwyneth Paltrow’s “Shallow Hal” body double opens up about eating disorders after film

In an interview with Amelia Tait, The former actress reflected on how the film influenced her and how it’s aged after all these years.

“Most of the time I just wanted to be funny,” Ivy said of her 20-year-old self, an acting student who wanted to be an actress or comedian.

She initially had no trouble with the film’s premise, which she felt seemed progressive by the time.

“At that point, if you saw someone in a movie who was obese, they were a villain,” Snitzer said. On the other hand, the character Rosemary was “cool, she was popular, she had friends.”

Snitzer also recalled that the movie experience was enjoyable too.

“It was so exciting. It was just fun being a part of a movie — there are so few people in the world who actually do that,” she said. She also added that the people on set “treated me like I really mattered, like they couldn’t do the movie without me,” noting that she felt “really comfortable” with them filming her.

However, Ivy hadn’t expected the reaction to the film or the distribution.

“I didn’t think the film would be seen by millions of people,” she said. She was mailed diet pills and scolded for saying, “It’s not the worst thing in the world to be fat,” and even the positive attention (like receiving a symphony someone wrote just for her) did not quite meet their expectations.

“I was very scared and became very small,” she said. “I thought, ‘Maybe I’m done with the concept of fame, maybe I don’t want to be an actor. Maybe I’ll do something else.”

Shortly after, the actress underwent lap band surgery, but after the procedure she said she “essentially got a torsion like dogs get and then die.”

“I was so skinny you could see my teeth through my face, and my skin was all grey,” she said, noting that she was “technically starving.”

At the time, however, she thought the surgery was a “fantastic” idea to “do something that’ll be okay.” [my weight].”

“If you’re fat, you should try not to be. I hated my body like I should. I ate a lot of salads. I had eating disorders that I was very proud of.”

“It didn’t occur to me that I should be ashamed of this behavior like a lot of people are,” Snitzer recalls. “For me, I should be proud of her.”

Ivy, who is now an insurance agency owner in Philadelphia, finally found her way to “a lot of stability” in her life – you can learn more about her journey Here.

If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, get help. Contact the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) at 1-800-931-2237 or go to NationalEatingDisorders.org.