Actress Kate Beckinsale has issued a poignant and emotional rebuttal to online critics who have targeted her for her slender figure, revealing her weight loss is a direct consequence of a year marked by profound personal grief.
A New Year Post Met With Cruelty
The 52-year-old Underworld star shared a vibrant montage on Instagram this Wednesday from an overseas New Year's trip. True to her eclectic style, the photos featured Beckinsale in a pink bikini, towering platform boots, a chiffon robe, and a tiara while feeding raccoons on a beach. Other snaps showcased her flexibility and a pair of tiny white silk pyjamas.
However, the festive post was overshadowed by negative comments about her physique, prompting the actress to post a tearful video response. "It wouldn't occur to me to see somebody transparently suffering and write something nasty about their appearance. It wouldn't cross my mind," she said emotionally.
Grief and Trauma Behind the Weight Loss
Beckinsale directly connected her appearance to a devastating period of loss. Her mother, actress Judy Loe, passed away at age 73 in July 2025 after a long battle with stage four cancer. This tragedy came just 18 months after the death of her stepfather, Roy, in January 2024, who had suffered a massive stroke while battling cancer.
"2025 was a really, really hard year. It was also the last year that my incredible mum was on this planet," Beckinsale explained, wiping away tears. She recounted witnessing the deaths of her father at age five, her stepfather, and her mother's degeneration. "Such an incredible amount of suffering... it doesn't make you feel very hungry," she stated candidly.
She clarified that her condition was not a willpower-driven disorder like anorexia, but a physical shutdown due to trauma. "It's like your body has closed down. I think it's shock and trauma... watching, especially alone, the people you love the most dearly suffer and have horrific and sometimes violent and awful deaths, really makes you not hungry."
A Legacy of Love and a Plea for Compassion
Beckinsale honoured her mother's vibrant spirit, sharing that Judy's funeral at Chiswick House was a celebration of life where guests were forbidden from wearing black. She described still feeling "blindsided and devastated" and often reaching for her phone to call her mother before remembering she is gone.
Addressing her critics directly, she concluded with a powerful sentiment: "And for all the people who are inconvenienced by me being too thin or too anything or not what they expect me to be like. I really wished you had parents like I had." Her message stands as a stark reminder of the hidden struggles behind public images and a plea for greater kindness online.
