Scarlett Johansson Defends Her Weight

by Jacki Donaldson (Subscribe to Jacki Donaldson's posts)
Apr 16th 2009 4:00PM

Tabloids recently report that Scarlett Johansson lost 14 pounds off her 5'3" frame in preparation for her superhero role in "Iron Man 2."

"If I were to lose 14 pounds, I'd have to part with both arms. And a foot," the star writes in a a recent Huffington Post column.

There you have it -- Johansson has not lost a bunch of weight. She might be a bit lighter and a tad more toned, but it has nothing to do with over-the-top training or quick-fix diets, despite what tabloid headlines are accusing. Nope, the 24-year-old is simply eating right and working out. "While training for an upcoming film, I've come to this conclusion: chin ups are near impossible and lunges suck," she confesses her rebuttal. "There is no magic wand to wave over oneself to look good in a latex catsuit. Eating healthy and getting fit is about commitment, determination, consistency and the dedication to self-preservation."

Johansson admits that she's pumped up her effort to look a certain way for a certain role (she also says she'll cut back her workouts to 30 minutes per day after filming), but she is appalled that "toilet paper rags" are getting rich by making false claims about her diet and fitness practices. It's reckless and dangerous, she says. "I would be absolutely mortified to discover that some 15-year-old girl in Kansas City read one of these 'articles' and decided she wasn't going to eat for a couple of weeks so she too could 'crash diet' and look like Scarlett Johansson."

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Sarah 4-16-2009 @ 6:00PM

so I've read the scarlet johansson article a couple of times and I actually saw the story about her weight controversy a few days ago when it broke on aol.com. The only thing is, why did she have to lose weight for the role in the first place? I mean, if she's all for the healthy body image then she really should have to change her curvy figure in order to play the role, I mean, becoming more muscular is one thing but intentionally losing weight so that she could get a part in a movie is another. I followed the story online and to another source she said:
"I would be absolutely mortified to discover that some 15-year-old girl in Kansas City read one of these 'articles' and decided she wasn't going to eat for a couple of weeks so she too could 'crash diet' and look like Scarlett Johansson."
...but some girl from Kansas probably wouldn't have low self-esteem to begin with if she wasn't bombarded by movies with actresses like Johansson in them - actresses who do an absurd amount of exercise and diet - who ultimately set the standard too high.
I'm not sure if I totally buy into this article that she wrote. It's written well but it just doesn't get any sympathy from me because whether or not she lost the "14 pounds" or whatever, she's still admitting that she had to whittle down her original size to play the role. Instead she should be saying that she worked on strength training so that she could be an Iron Woman to play the role of the secretary in "Iron Man" the movie (or something).