“Impeachment: American Crime Story” Actress Sarah Paulson said she regrets wearing extra padding to play Linda Tripp in the FX drama, citing concerns about ‘fatphobia’ in Hollywood.
In an Aug. 26 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Paulson talked about her role as Tripp, the White House intern who broke the Monica Lewinsky scandal. Paulson gained 30 pounds to look more like Tripp but was also fitted with several prosthetics, including several pounds of padding, which led to her being criticized online.
“There’s a lot of controversy around actors and fat suits, and I think that controversy is a legitimate one,” said Paulson of the criticism, according to the Los Angeles Times. “I think fat phobia is real. I think to pretend otherwise causes further harm. And it is a very important conversation to be had.”(RELATED: ‘Yellowstone’ Releases Chilling New Season 4 Promo)
However, Paulson reportedly defended herself, saying that considering characters based on physical appearance is limiting.
Sarah Paulson has regrets about playing Linda Tripp. But she’s not ready to let her go https://t.co/OZGjoulXax
— Los Angeles Times (@latimes) August 26, 2021
“I do think to imagine that the only thing any actor called upon to play this part would have to offer is their physical self is a real reduction of the offering the actor has to make,” she said. “I would like to believe that there is something in my being that makes me right to play this part.”
But she did express regret over accepting the role, saying that she wished she thought about it “more fully.” “Should I have known? Abso-f—ing-lutely. But I do now. And I wouldn’t make the same choice going forward,” she explained.
“Impeachment: American Crime Story” premieres Sept. 7. Paulson stars alongside Clive Owen as Bill Clinton, Edie Falco as Hillary Clinton, Beanie Feldstein as Monica Lewinsky, and Annaleigh Ashford as Paula Jones.