Check the comments of any recent Ariana Grande post. Between discussions about her new music and the many fans complimenting her makeup, there’s one comment that appears concerningly often: Why does she look so skinny?
It’s not just Ariana Grande. The criticism has been directed towards a multitude of celebrities. Michelle Yeoh, Emma Stone and Anya Taylor-Joy have all been on the receiving end of criticism concerning what fans dub their “extreme thinness.” Even musician Meghan Trainor — who, a decade ago, built her entire brand on body positivity — has sparked rumors that she might be on popular appetite-suppressants like Ozempic or Mounjaro.
While Hollywood’s normalization of ultra-thin physiques is concerning, targeting and criticizing individual celebrities only furthers the objectification of female artists; instead, moving towards change requires more thoughtful societal dialogue.
For many, the sudden shift into these thin physiques is jarring. While traditional beauty standards’ emphasis on thinness has never fully faded, its effects were curbed during the third wave of the body positivity movement in the 2010s and early 2020s. In the 2010s, bloggers and the early advent of social media helped bring the then-obscure body positive movement into mainstream discourse. The break in body shaming felt like a breath of fresh air from the rigid cultural standards of the y2k era.
Beauty standards in the 2000s were toxic, unhealthy and often unattainable. Natural and healthy aspects of the body were treated as a flaw; young girls were taught to make sure they got rid of their “thunder thighs”, “love handles” or “muffin tops.” This messaging instilled disordered eating and body dysphoria in women and girls from a young age; the messaging was pervasive.
While the body positivity movement is still going strong in some circles, some are concerned that Hollywood and American culture is seeing a relapse of Y2K beauty standards — skinny seems to be back. The usage of appetite suppressants and GLP-1 drugs is on the rise, with many celebrities treating it as a means to get thin quick.
While it might seem like the answer is to jump into Ariana Grande’s comment section and preach about the harms of toxic beauty standards, that approach ultimately does more harm than good. Grande, like all celebrities, is human. Criticizing her body does not fix our society-wide obsession with thinness, nor does it productively contribute to conversation surrounding beauty standards.
Targeting the body types of specific celebrities, even when well-intentioned, threatens their mental health. There is no way to tell what relationship an individual has with their own body, health, and appearance. While many may see their comments as a means to hold the industry accountable, in reality, they are targeting an individual who may be suffering from the industry itself. While celebrities are responsible for the image they promote to the public, by conflating the victim with the problem many activists leave the root cause of the issue unaddressed.
Ariana Grande has spoken up to criticize the comfortability netizens have when commenting on others’ appearances and bodies. Other female artists have spoken up about how audiences often focus on their appearances more than their art. They feel as though their work is overshadowed by comments about their appearances, even when those comments seem caring. Even well-meaning comments become a means of unconscious objectification.
It is vital to have productive community dialogue surrounding unhealthy beauty standards. Instead of critiquing specific bodies, the aim should be to bring more body diversity into mainstream media and to encourage smaller-scale, face-to-face conversations about body positivity. Change starts small. Teaching kids about body positivity, complimenting others on their character and actions rather than their appearances, and refraining from commenting on other people’s looks can be a healthy step in the right direction.
Still, the media has a long way to go when it comes to body diversity. Thin is seen as the default in most casting processes. Systemic body shaming cannot be rectified through Instagram comment sections, but it crumbles under thoughtful dialogue and change.
Shanaaz Faisal is an Opinion Intern for the summer 2026 quarter. She can be reached at shanaazf@uci.edu.
Edited by Ruby Goodwin
Interested in becoming an intern or a contributing writer for the Opinion section?
Contact us at opinion@newuniversity.org!