Gwyneth Paltrow’s ‘Shallow Hal’ Body Double Developed an Eating Disorder After the Movie Was Released

Ivy Snitzer, who appeared in the movie Shallow Hal as the body double for Gwyneth Paltrow‘s character Rosemary, is opening up about the eating disorder she developed after the film was released in theaters.

Jack Black starred in the movie as a man named Hal who becomes hypnotized and begins to see women as beautiful as long as they have inner beauty, leading him to fall in love with a woman who is actually overweight.

Ivy was just 20-years-old when she appeared in the movie for close-ups of the character’s body while Gwyneth wore a fat suit for some scenes.

“It was so exciting. It was just fun to be part of a movie – there are so few people who actually get to do that,” Ivy told The Guardian about working on the project, adding that the crew made her “feel really comfortable.”

Her mindset on the experience all changed when the film was released in 2001.

“It didn’t occur to me that the film would be seen by millions of people,” she said. “It was like the worst parts about being fat were magnified. And no one was telling me I was funny.”

After doing some interviews for the movie, Ivy was sent diet pills by one person who found her address. Others wrote love letters and sympathy notes.

“I got really scared,” she said. “I was like: maybe I’m done with the concept of fame, maybe I don’t want to be an actor. Maybe I’ll do something else.”

After the film was released, she remembers being called a “good fatty.” She added, “I hated my body the way I was supposed to. I ate a lot of salads. I had eating disorders that I was very proud of.”

Ivy had gastric band surgery in 2003, but the band slipped shortly after the procedure “and I got a torsion – like dogs get and then die.” The issue happened while she didn’t have insurance, so she had to get a temp job and then wait three months before her insurance kicked in. During that time, she couldn’t consume anything thicker than water without throwing up.

“I was so thin you could see my teeth through my face and my skin was all grey,” she said. “And I was just so bitchy all the time. I kind of alienated a lot of my friends. My mother was also dying; it was bleak. Humans shouldn’t have to experience how very bleak that particular time in my life was.”

Despite the timing, Ivy says she didn’t get the surgery because of the reaction to the film. She said, “I’m sure I wanted to be small and not seen. I’m sure that’s there, but I don’t ever remember consciously thinking about it.”

Read more on TheGuardian.com.