Margot Robbie Discloses Male Co-Star Gave Her Weight-Loss Book Telling Her to 'Eat Less'
Australian actress Margot Robbie has revealed a disturbing incident from early in her career, where a male co-star gave her a weight-loss book with the implicit message that she should reduce her food intake. The 35-year-old star, currently promoting her new film Wuthering Heights, shared this experience in a candid interview with musician Charli XCX, who recorded the soundtrack for the movie.
Shocking Early Career Experience
Robbie recalled that during the very beginning of her acting journey, an unnamed male actor she worked with presented her with a copy of French Women Don't Get Fat: The Secret of Eating for Pleasure by Mireille Guiliano. This book, first published in 2006 and which became a bestseller, is specifically targeted at women seeking to lose up to thirty pounds through dietary changes.
"He essentially gave me a book to let me know that I should lose weight," Robbie stated, reflecting on the incident with clear dismay. "I was like, 'Wow.'" Her immediate reaction at the time was even more forceful, as she told the co-star directly: "F*** you, dude!"
Reflections on Hollywood Sexism
When Charli XCX inquired whether this actor was still active in the industry, Robbie responded that it happened "a very long time ago" and she has "no idea where he would even be now." This revelation adds to Robbie's previous comments about the pervasive sexism she has encountered throughout her career in film, both as an actress and more recently as a producer.
In a 2020 interview with Glamour UK, Robbie discussed how sexist attitudes remain "naturally ingrained" in many people working on film sets. She described situations where, even when she should be making decisions as a producer, people would instead direct questions to "the closest, eldest male in the room." According to Robbie, this bias seems to be "an inherent thing everyone has got in their DNA."
Current Project and Critical Reception
Robbie's disclosure comes as she promotes Wuthering Heights, an adaptation of Emily Brontë's classic 1847 novel in which she stars opposite Jacob Elordi. Unfortunately, the film has received predominantly negative reviews from critics. The Independent's Clarisse Loughrey awarded it just one star, criticizing it as representative of "our modern literacy crisis" and suggesting it reduces literature to mere distraction rather than intellectual expansion.
Despite this critical reception, Robbie continues to be one of Hollywood's most prominent voices against industry sexism, having starred in major films like Barbie and The Wolf of Wall Street while also establishing herself as a producer advocating for more equitable working environments.
