Seth Rogen Calls Himself a Sellout

Big Fat Deal found this snippet on IMDB about Seth Rogen‘s recent weight loss, and Rogen’s admission of “guilt.”  The quote, for those who haven’t seen it yet, is this:

http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/7/76/SethRogen_7_2007.JPG/515px-SethRogen_7_2007.JPG

“I think for chubby guys, I was their guy so they were like, ‘I can be chubby. Seth Rogen‘s chubby, so who cares.’ But now I’m not so chubby anymore. So now they’re like, ‘I have to lose weight.’ I’ve let them down. I’ve blatantly sold out. It’s only for money.”

I’m still chewing on this, but I’ll sally forth with some opinion:

Seth Rogen is a funny guy. I’ve been impressed with his acting talents since I first saw him on Freaks and Geeks, and the man has a well-deserved and prosperous career. I’m not really a fan, but I’m not a hater, either. And while I’ve enjoyed his work a great deal, and I’ve admired how many parts he’s scored that didn’t have to be played by a fat guy, I’m well aware he’s enjoyed the hell out of the Hollywood double standard that allows a man to take up space and requires a woman to be a size zero.

I think it would be nice if he didn’t have to lose weight, but if you waved enough money and a superhero part in front of me, I would definitely think twice but I would probably still end up using my advance to get some liposuction and a personal trainer.  I have family that would benefit from me landing a big-money role, and to me that would be worth the pain and the inevitable recidivism. Putting myself in his shoes isn’t remotely relevant, it’s just that most people would consider what they would do in his position, not what Rogen would do for himself based on circumstances we do and don’t know about.

In the end, I support body primacy up to a point. Only you should decide how your body is altered. I respect and support Rogen’s choice, but I’m also chewing on the idea of himself as a role model for men, since I also think he was sending a significant message to women, too. I’m just not sure what that message was.

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  • http://www.plusshe.com Moe

    I think he’s being a little too hard on himself. Someone said in another post somewhere that the Hornet isn’t chubby and he’s getting into a role. But when that is transferred to women that means pretty much every lead woman role assumes a slender role when in fact they don’t have to be.

  • http://fatchic.dianarajchel.com di

    I agree that he’s overstating it, quite possibly – I guess I’d need to see his fanmail to know what kind of response he’s really expecting. And yes, women don’t “need” to be thin for the parts that they play either – but that’s almost universally how it’s interpreted.

    I think the real test will be whether Rogen gains weight back after he’s done with the role, and if he’s going to end up getting Oprah-like coverage over it.

  • http://www.plusshe.com Moe

    “Oprah-like coverage”. I don’t think there’s is such a thing for men. I’m trying to think of someone but no one comes to mind. You?

  • http://fatchic.dianarajchel.com di

    Drawing a total blank. I can’t even think of an example of a man who’s yo-yoed. There was the guy in Varsity Blues who lost weight and seems to have disappeared from public attention.