Demi Moore developed eating disorder after Hollywood producer told her to ‘lose weight’

A Few Good Men star Demi Moore has opened up about her struggles with body image and an eating disorder, which she attributes to pressure from Hollywood producers.

In an interview with Elle magazine, Moore shared that, early in her career, a producer repeatedly urged her to lose weight – a situation she described as both “embarrassing and humiliating.”

Moore shared, “There is a lot of torment I put myself through when I was younger.”

“The perfect example is when I was told to lose weight multiple times. The producer pulled me aside. It was very embarrassing and humiliating.”

The Ghost star didn’t reveal the producer’s name but admitted their comments sparked her fixation on dieting and working out.

Moore admitted that she placed a lot of importance on her appearance, which fueled her eating disorder.

She added, “But that’s just one thing.”

“How I internalized it and how it moved me to a place of such torture and harshness against myself, of real extreme behaviours, and that I placed almost all the value of who I was on my body being a certain way… that’s on me.” 

She continued, “I changed my body multiple times through different roles, and I think I chose those roles, whether it was conscious or not, for the very opportunity to find some peace and self-love.”

This isn’t the first time she has spoken about these struggles; in her 2019 memoir, “Inside Out”, she wrote about her unhealthy focus on fitness and body image, particularly while preparing for A Few Good Men.

She wrote in her memoir, “I didn’t feel like I could stop exercising. It was my job to fit into that unforgiving military uniform I’d be wearing in two months in A Few Good Men.”

“Getting in shape for that movie launched the obsession with working out that would consume me over the next five years,” she added. “I never dared let up.”

Moore began her career with small roles in television and film, but her breakout role came in the 1985 drama St. Elmo’s Fire, where she starred alongside other members of the “Brat Pack.”

Her portrayal of the troubled yet charismatic Jules earned her recognition as a promising young actress. This role, combined with her appearances in movies like About Last Night (1986), helped establish her as a leading actress of her generation.

Moore’s career skyrocketed with her role in the romantic drama Ghost (1990), where she starred alongside Patrick Swayze and Whoopi Goldberg.

The film became a cultural phenomenon, grossing over $500 million worldwide and earning Moore a Golden Globe nomination.