Fatsuit

Last updated November 30, 2023

A fatsuit, also known as a fat suit or a fat-suit, is a bodysuit-like undergarment used to thicken the appearance of an actress or actor of light to medium build into an overweight or obese character, in conjunction with prosthetic makeup. Fatsuits worn by characters are either deliberately visible or mainly concealed. Most are intended as unseen body padding beneath a costume (e.g., Rosemary Shanahan in Shallow Hal , and Sherman Klump in The Nutty Professor ), others appear as realistic flesh and are viewed directly (e.g., Fat Bastard in Austin Powers , and Les Grossman's hands in Tropic Thunder ). A fatsuit is often used to provide comedic effect, as in music videos for "Fat" by "Weird Al" Yankovic, "Marblehead Johnson" by The Bluetones, "Keine Lust" by Rammstein and "Way 2 Sexy" by Drake, and the episode "The Cooper Extraction" of The Big Bang Theory.

Experience of obesity

Fatsuits may also be used to impart the experience of being obese to the wearer, not just the appearance of obesity to their audience. The suit in this case is weighted, as well as padded. Where the intention is to impart the experience of being seen as overweight in a community, its appearance must also be realistic and so a fatsuit rather than just a weight belt is needed. Several celebrities noted for their slimness have worn such garments and recorded their, and others', reactions as documentary of social attitudes to weight.^[1]

In media

Year	Program	Episode	Fat Suit Performer(s)	Synopsis
1994–2004	Friends	Numerous episodes	Courteney Cox as Monica Geller	Monica reminisces about the time when she was a 255lb teenager. Chandler calling her "fat" eventually encouraged her to lose weight.
1994	The Santa Clause	Movie	Tim Allen as Scott Calvin / Santa Claus
1994	The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air	Season 5, Episode 11	Will Smith as William "Will" Smith	Uncle Phil's personal trainer Susan Powter forces Will to wear a fat suit so he can experience what it is like to be obese.
1996	Marblehead Johnson	Music Video	The Bluetones, Mark Morriss Scott Morriss Eds Chesters Adam Devlin	British band The Bluetones spend the day wearing rubber fat suits to rock out in the English countryside.
1998	Goosebumps	Season 3, Episode 18 "Say Cheese and Die Again"	Patrick Thomas as Greg Banks	Greg finds the supernatural camera from Say Cheese and Die! and plans to use it for his failing English project. After a fight with his friend Shari, with them snapping a picture of each other, Greg wakes up the next morning to find that he has become fat. Shari, however, loses weight constantly. Greg gains more weight throughout the episode, growing fatter until his belly is exposed. Greg learns that he will explode and Shari will vanish if this is not set right. Shari and Greg go to his brother Terry to reverse the photos. Greg grows fatter still and nearly explodes when he and Shari are returned to normal. During the episode, the skinny young 13-year-old actor is fitted with a full fat face prosthetic plus a padded fat suit when the boy becomes the fattest.
1999	Learn to Fly	Music Video	Dave Grohl, Taylor Hawkins	Dave and Taylor of the Foo Fighters dress up as a fat couple during the music video.
2000	Big Wolf on Campus	Season 2, Episode 12	Danny Smith	Merton is fattened up by evil spider people who plan to eat him. Danny sports a 400-pound latex fat suit with huge rubber arms for the episode.
2000	Big Momma's House	Movie	Martin Lawrence as Malcolm Turner disguised as Hattie Mae Pierce (Big Momma)
2000–2001	The Sopranos	Numerous episodes	Steve Schirripa as Bobby Baccalieri	For his first two seasons on the show, Schirripa wears a fat suit to better fit the role.^[2]
2001	America's Sweethearts	Movie	Julia Roberts as Kathleen "Kiki" Harrison	Only in the flashbacks does she wear the fatsuit. She has "lost 60 pounds" in the present day scenes.
2001	Friends	Season 7, Episode 16	Matt LeBlanc as Joey Tribbiani	Chandler learns that Monica was actually planning on sleeping with Joey the night they first got together. This leads to Monica wondering what would her life have been like if she was with Joey. In the next scene Monica is cooking much food and calls Joey. Joey comes out of the bedroom to the table now being morbidly obese. Monica has to help him reach the table where he states his favorite food is "fried stuff with cheese".
2001	Shallow Hal	Movie	Gwyneth Paltrow as Rosemary Shanahan	Hal Larson Jack Black has a history of dating only women who are physically attractive. Tony Robbins (playing himself) convinces Hal to see the inner beauty in women, which convinces him obese Rosemary has the same physical attractiveness Hal is really looking for.
2001	Love on a Diet	Movie	Andy Lau as Fatso, Sammi Cheng as Mini Mo	Andy Lau and Sammi Cheng both play obese characters.
2002–2003	Mi Gorda Bella	telenovela and numerous episodes	Natalia Streignard as Valentina Villanueva Lanz / Bella de la Rosa
2002–2008	Monk	Numerous episodes	Adam Arkin, Tim Curry and Ray Porter as Dale The Wale	Dale Biederbeck is a client and antagonist of Mr. Monk. He used to weigh over 900lbs but slimmed down to 800lbs in the first episode.
2004	Fat Albert	Movie	Kenan Thompson as Fat Albert
2004	Little Britain	Numerous episodes	Matt Lucas as Bubbles DeVere and David Walliams as Desiree DeVere
2004	That '70s Show	Season 6, Episode 8, "I'm a Boy"	Topher Grace as Eric Forman	Eric imagines his life as a super obese guy.
2005	Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps	Series 5, Episode 8	Will Mellor as Gaz Wilkinson	Six months after splitting up with Donna, Gaz now weighs more than 18 stone (the maximum weight on his scales). He started to eat junk-food to fill the hole in his life and claims the lack of sex cause his weight to balloon. He eventually loses all the excess fat by three months of excessive masturbation.
2005	Rammstein's Keine Lust	Music Video	Rammstein	Members of Rammstein headbang in full body fat suits in an abandoned warehouse in the music video. Each member wore prosthetics and a fat suit, except for Flake who opted to stay skinny. Till had the added bonus of also donning rubber fat arms.
2006	Click	Movie	Adam Sandler as Michael Newman	Michael Newman is fast-forwarded to 2017 where he is finally CEO, but now a 400lb junk-food addict who cannot stop eating Twinkies. He eventually has numerous liposuctions and tummy tucks after hitting his head and have a heart attack during chemotherapy.
2006	Jamie's Return to School Dinners	TV ad	Jamie Oliver	Celebrity chef Jamie Oliver dons a full prosthetic fat suit and slip on fat hands in a series of ads to promote his TV special Jamie's Return to School Dinners. During the ads, Jamie chows down on junk food, breaks a moped, and misses the bus while in the suit. The extras in the commercials are also overweight, and many of them, including several school children, also wear latex fat suits.
2006	200 Pounds Beauty	Movie	Kim Ah-joong as Hanna Kang	Hanna Kang is a kind-hearted young woman with a beautiful voice but is hindered by a less than beautiful outer appearance, which includes being severely overweight. Not being able to profit from her voice in the forefront, Hanna settles for working as a ghost singer and phone sex worker until getting heart broken. She goes into hiding where she endures extensive plastic surgery and exercise. Hanna later returns as her new identity “Jenny”; a beautiful, slender, Korean-American woman.
2007	Hairspray	Movie	John Travolta as Edna Turnblad
2007	Norbit	Movie	Eddie Murphy as Rasputia Latimore	Rasputia Latimore is the morbidly obese wife of Norbit who will do anything to stop him from leaving her.
2007	To Be Fat like Me	TV film	Kaley Cuoco as Alyson	Aly, a thin young woman convinced that her overweight brother and mother use their weight as an excuse for their problems in life, attends a summer course wearing a fatsuit in order to film a documentary.
2008	Tropic Thunder	Movie	Tom Cruise as the middle-aged hot-headed studio executive Les Grossman
2008	My Big Love	Movie	Sam Milby as Macky Cordova
2009	How I Met Your Mother	Season 5, Episode 7	Neil Patrick Harris as Barney Stinson	After finally getting into a relationship, Barney stops caring about how he looks and eventually gains a lot of weight. He then would rather eat than make-out with his girlfriend. He loses the weight after eventually breaking up with her.
2009	M.I. High	S03E06 "Fit to Wurst"	Jonny Freeman as Frank	A mystery meat transforms Frank into an obese man. Jonny Freeman dons a fat suit and prosthetic mask during the episode.
2010	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 1	Movie	Harry Melling as Dudley Dursley	Harry Melling who had lost so much weight needed to wear a fatsuit in order to portray the role of Dudley Dursley in the movie since his last appearance in the role.
2010–2011	Llena de amor	telenovela	Ariadne Díaz as Marianela Ruiz y de Teresa Pavón de Sevilla / Victoria de la Garza Montiel (numerous episodes) Valentino Lanús as Emanuel Sevilla Pérez (episode 202) Azela Robinson as Fedra Curiel / Juana Felipa Pérez Fernández "La Reina" (episode 202)
2010	Private Practice	Season 4, Episode 10 "Just Lose It"	Brett Delbuono as Justin Tanner	Young teen actor Delbuono wears a huge latex fat suit (face, neck, arms, exposed legs) to play a 500lbs+ boy with health problems.
2011	Thor	Movie	Ray Stevenson as Volstagg	Stevenson wore a fat suit for the role.
2012	Hot in Cleveland	Season 3, Episode 14 "Hot and Heavy"	James Patrick Stuart Wendie Malick as Colin and Victoria	Victoria and Colin don latex fat suits for a TV news expose.
2017	American Horror Story: Cult	Movie	Evan Peters as Jim Jones	Evan Peters wears a fatsuit and prosthetics to portray cult leader Jim Jones, although the real Jones was noticeably fatter than the actor portrayed him as.
2014	The Gifted	Movie	Anne Curtis as Zoe Tuazon/ Joey
2019	Gotham	Season 5	Robin Lord Taylor as Oswald Cobblepot/Penguin	In the series finale, Lord Taylor wears a fatsuit to reflect Cobblepot's slight weight gain as part of the character's new appearance, which more closely mimics that of his comic book counterpart.
2019	American Gods	Cut Scene	Bruce Langley as Technical Boy	Langley wore a prosthetic fat suit for an unaired/cut scene showing Technical Boy the way author Neil Gaiman wrote him in the novel. The scene was dropped though pictures of him made up as a fat guy showed up online.
2019	Avengers: Endgame	Movie	Chris Hemsworth as Thor	Hemsworth wore a 60-70 lb. fat suit to portray an overweight Thor.
2021	The Thing About Pam	Television series	Renée Zellweger as Pam Hupp	Zellweger wore a fat suit and facial prosthetics to portray Hupp.^[3]^[4]
2022	The Whale	Movie	Brendan Fraser as Charlie	^[5]
2023	John Wick: Chapter 4	Movie	Scott Adkins as Killa Harkan	^[6]

Related Research Articles

Body mass index (BMI) is a value derived from the mass (weight) and height of a person. The BMI is defined as the body mass divided by the square of the body height, and is expressed in units of kg/m², resulting from mass in kilograms (kg) and height in metres (m).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fat acceptance movement</span> Social movement seeking to change anti-fat bias in social attitudes

The fat acceptance movement is a social movement which seeks to eliminate the social stigma of obesity from social attitudes by pointing out the obstacles which are faced by fat people. Areas of contention include the aesthetic, legal, and medical approaches to fat people.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abdominal obesity</span> Excess fat around the stomach and abdomen

Abdominal obesity, also known as central obesity and truncal obesity, is the human condition of an excessive concentration of visceral fat around the stomach and abdomen to such an extent that it is likely to harm its bearer's health. Abdominal obesity has been strongly linked to cardiovascular disease, Alzheimer's disease, and other metabolic and vascular diseases.

Obesity is a medical condition, sometimes considered a disease, in which excess body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it can potentially have negative affects on health. People are classified as obese when their body mass index (BMI)—a person's weight divided by the square of the person's height—is over 30 kg/m²; the range 25–30 kg/m² is defined as overweight. Some East Asian countries use lower values to calculate obesity. Obesity is a major cause of disability and is correlated with various diseases and conditions, particularly cardiovascular diseases, type 2 diabetes, obstructive sleep apnea, certain types of cancer, and osteoarthritis.

Renée Kathleen Zellweger is an American actress. The recipient of various accolades, including two Academy Awards, two British Academy Film Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards, she was one of the world's highest-paid actresses by 2007.

Prosthetic makeup, which may also be referred to as special make-up effects or FX prosthesis, is the process of using prosthetic sculpting, molding, and casting techniques to create advanced cosmetic effects. Prosthetic makeup draws a straight lineage from the Stagecraft of theatre and can be observed at the birth of science fiction cinema with Le Voyage dans La Lune, a 1902 French adventure short film directed by pioneer of special effects Georges Méliès.

Competitive swimwear refers to the swimsuit, clothing, equipment, and accessories used in the aquatic sports of swimming, diving, synchronized swimming, triathlon, and water polo.

<i>Love on a Diet</i> 2001 film by Johnnie To, Wai Ka-Fai

Love on a Diet is a 2001 Hong Kong romantic comedy film produced and directed by Johnnie To and Wai Ka-fai, starring Andy Lau and Sammi Cheng.

<i>Thinner</i> (film) 1996 American horror film

Thinner is a 1996 American body horror film directed by Tom Holland and written by Michael McDowell and Holland. The film is based on Stephen King's 1984 novel of the same name and stars Robert John Burke, Joe Mantegna, Lucinda Jenney, Michael Constantine, Kari Wuhrer, and Bethany Joy Lenz.

Childhood obesity is a condition where excess body fat negatively affects a child's health or well-being. As methods to determine body fat directly are difficult, the diagnosis of obesity is often based on BMI. Due to the rising prevalence of obesity in children and its many adverse health effects it is being recognized as a serious public health concern. The term 'overweight' rather than 'obese' is often used when discussing childhood obesity, as it is less stigmatizing, although the term 'overweight' can also refer to a different BMI category. The prevalence of childhood obesity is known to differ by sex and gender.

<i>Norbit</i> 2007 film by Brian Robbins

Norbit is a 2007 American comedy film, directed by Brian Robbins, and co-written by, co-produced by, and starring Eddie Murphy. The film co-stars Thandie Newton, Terry Crews, Cuba Gooding Jr., Eddie Griffin, Katt Williams, Marlon Wayans, and Charlie Murphy. It was released by DreamWorks and Paramount Pictures on February 9, 2007. Eddie Murphy portrays multiple roles including the eponymous Norbit and his abusive obese wife Rasputia; regretting ever having married her, Norbit decides he has had enough of her behavior at about the same time that his childhood sweetheart Kate returns to his life with plans for the orphanage where Norbit and Kate grew up. Norbit risks everything to be with her, but must also contend with Rasputia and her brothers, who have an agenda of their own.

<i>To Be Fat like Me</i> 2007 American TV series

To Be Fat like Me is a 2007 American drama television film directed by Douglas Barr and starring Kaley Cuoco. It premiered on Lifetime on January 8, 2007.

Sizeism or size discrimination is unjust or prejudicial treatment directed at people based on their size.

Obesity is common in the United States and is a major health issue associated with numerous diseases, specifically an increased risk of certain types of cancer, coronary artery disease, type 2 diabetes, stroke, and cardiovascular disease, as well as significant increases in early mortality and economic costs.

Being overweight or fat is having more body fat than is optimally healthy. Being overweight is especially common where food supplies are plentiful and lifestyles are sedentary.

Social stigma of obesity is broadly defined as bias or discriminatory behaviors targeted at overweight and obese individuals because of their weight and a high body fat percentage. Such social stigmas can span one's entire life, as long as excess weight is present, starting from a young age and lasting into adulthood. Studies also indicate overweight and obese individuals experience higher levels of stigma compared to other people.

Body shape refers to the many physical attributes of the human body that make up its appearance, including size and countenance. Body shape has come to imply not only sexual/reproductive ability, but wellness and fitness. In the West, slenderness is associated with happiness, success, youth, and social acceptability. Being overweight is associated with laziness. The media promote a weight-conscious standard for women more often than for men. Deviance from these norms result in social consequences. The media perpetuate this ideal in various ways, particularly glorifying and focusing on thin actors and actresses, models, and other public figures while avoiding the use or image of overweight individuals. This thin ideal represents less than 15% of the American population.

Creature suits are realistic costumes used to disguise a performer as an animal, monster, or other being. They are used in film, television, or as costumed characters in live events. Unlike mascots, they are often made with a high degree of realism. In contrast with prosthetic makeup, which is applied to an actor's skin, the wearer is not normally visible outside their movements controlling the costume, although in some cases, part of the wearer's body is still visible.

The Thing About Pam is an American true crime comedy-drama television miniseries detailing the involvement of Pam Hupp in the 2011 murder of Betsy Faria. It stars Renée Zellweger, Josh Duhamel, Judy Greer, Gideon Adlon, Sean Bridgers, Suanne Spoke, Mac Brandt, Katy Mixon, and Glenn Fleshler. Jenny Klein serves as showrunner for the series.

Being overweight or obese has influence on the sexuality of people in various different aspects. It can include negative aspects such as stigmatization which can be an obstacle for romantic developments, sexual dysfunction and an increased chance of risky sexual behavior. It can also have positive aspects in the form of fat fetishism.

References

↑ "Tyra Banks Ex". November 4, 2005.
↑ "Schirripa wore fat suit for The Sopranos". uk.news.yahoo.com. March 30, 2012.
↑ Griffin, Louise (October 7, 2021). "Renee Zellweger criticised for wearing fat suit in new role: 'It's damaging, fatphobic and potentially triggering'". Metro . Retrieved October 10, 2021.
↑ Young, Julius (October 7, 2021). "Renée Zellweger dons controversial fat suit in portrayal of real-life killer Pam Hupp". Fox News . Retrieved October 10, 2021.
↑ Schulman, Michael (2022-12-07). "About Brendan Fraser's Fat Suit in "The Whale"". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X . Retrieved 2023-05-29.
↑ Thorp, Charles (2023-04-17). "Scott Adkins on Kicking Ass in a 100-pound Fat Suit for 'John Wick: Chapter 4'". Men's Journal.

External links

This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.

[ABC_Banks-1] "Tyra Banks Ex". November 4, 2005.

[2] "Schirripa wore fat suit for The Sopranos". uk.news.yahoo.com. March 30, 2012.

[Griffin2021-3] Griffin, Louise (October 7, 2021). "Renee Zellweger criticised for wearing fat suit in new role: 'It's damaging, fatphobic and potentially triggering'". Metro . Retrieved October 10, 2021.

[Young2021-4] Young, Julius (October 7, 2021). "Renée Zellweger dons controversial fat suit in portrayal of real-life killer Pam Hupp". Fox News . Retrieved October 10, 2021.

[5] Schulman, Michael (2022-12-07). "About Brendan Fraser's Fat Suit in "The Whale"". The New Yorker. ISSN 0028-792X . Retrieved 2023-05-29.

[6] Thorp, Charles (2023-04-17). "Scott Adkins on Kicking Ass in a 100-pound Fat Suit for 'John Wick: Chapter 4'". Men's Journal.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

[5]

[6]