1. Jennifer Lawrence
As she showed in the Barbara Walters interview quoted above, Jennifer Lawrence is the opposite of a celeb you love to hate — if anything, she’s the star everybody loves to love. Yet another reason to love her is her regular insistence that Hollywood be held accountable for the kinds of messages it conveys about size, beauty, and femininity. She famously refused to lose weight for The Hunger Games, instead focusing on working out and getting strong — and she caught flack for it from critics (yes, female as well as male). The New York Times wrote that Lawrence’s “womanly figure makes a bad fit for a dystopian fantasy about a people starved into submission.” What does J-Law have to say to that? She told Elle, “I’m never going to starve myself for a part … I don’t want little girls to be like, ‘Oh, I want to look like Katniss, so I’m going to skip dinner.’” For a star who’s beloved for her ability to laugh at herself, she takes her position as a potential role model seriously — all the more reason to love her.
2. Adele
Adele doesn’t pull punches when it comes to taking down exes in her music, and she doesn’t have time for body critics either. As it turns out, her success has landed her the covers of Rolling Stone and British music mag Q… as well as Vogue, Elle, and Cosmopolitan. Adele’s uncompromising attitude and belief in her talents has definitely worked out for her.
3. Amber Riley
She’s known for playing the uber-confident Mercedes on Glee, but before landing that role Amber Riley had given up on Hollywood and decided, with the support of her parents, to go back to being a regular high school student. Luckily for us, she eventually decided to try again and found a role that let her shine without having to compromise.
4. Kate Winslet
This Brit has always been open about her struggles with body image and comparing herself to other Hollywood actresses. Her words are not only important criticisms of the standards set out for female celebs; Winslet also wants to be sure she’s sending the right message to her own daughter. “As a child, I never heard one woman say to me, ‘I love my body.’ … So I make sure to say it to Mia, because a positive physical outlook has to start at an early age.”
5. Kelly Clarkson
Clarkson has come a long way since winning American Idol more than a decade ago, and throughout her career she’s faced intense scrutiny for her weight fluctuations (including a scandal when Self Photoshopped the singer to appear extra skinny on the cover of their “Body Confidence” issue). No matter what her size though, Clarkson has always been vocal about calling out Hollywood’s unrealistic standards and the importance of loving yourself.
6. Gabourey Sibide
Earlier this year at a Ms. Foundation gala, the star of Precious gave an unbelievably inspiring speech about finding confidence and inner strength in spite of people — from internet commenters and fashion reporters to her grade school classmates and family members — who dismissed her based on her appearance. It’s definitely not the only time that Sibide has confronted Hollywood’s beauty standards head-on, but there’s a reason this very personal speech went viral: It’s incredibly heartfelt and moving.
7. Rihanna
So why is Rihanna so confident? RiRi is real with herself about the expectations placed on women, and as she told the UK’s Daily Mail, she’d rather be herself than try to force herself to fit others’ expectations.
8. Mindy Kaling
We loved her as Kelly on The Office, we adored her hilarious memoir, and with statements like this, it’s hard not to fall head over heels for the real Mindy Kaling. Kaling works hard to keep it real (like in this quote from an interview with Parade magazine), and regularly uses her star status to give the world some straight talk about body image.
9. Amy Poehler
Actress Amy Poehler might be mom to two sons, but with Amy Poehler’s Smart Girls (“Change the World by Being Yourself”), she’s an amazing surrogate mother to girls (and women) everywhere. This quote from her YouTube “Ask Amy” series is but one small example of how empowering — and endearing — Poehler is. Leslie Knope would love Amy Poehler.
10. Margaret Cho
Comedian Margaret Cho has always been outspoken on a wide variety of topics, but in recent years, she’s become more vocal about warped standards of beauty and the impact they have on people’s lives. Cho goes out of her way to use public forums — from her stand-up act to her Twitter account — to speak out against rigid and sexist beauty standards, and to call out those who judge women solely by their looks.
11. Rebel Wilson
Her Super Fun Night may not have won over viewers (many felt it relied too much on making fun of the actress’s size), but Rebel Wilson still deserves props for being consistently, unapologetically herself. She told InTouch she credits her appearance with helping her succeed in Hollywood: “[N]ot looking like anyone else has made things easier for me, because I’m distinctive.”
12. Beyoncé
As Kelly Clarkson pointed out, Beyoncé is an astonishingly beautiful woman and yes, she gets Photoshopped. But Queen B doesn’t let her get it down — and she doesn’t think you should get hung up on that stuff either, as she told Very magazine.
13. Melissa McCarthy
Melissa McCarthy is known for playing crazy, off-the-wall characters, but when it comes to body image, she is downright sane. Pretty much every interview she does involves answering questions about her size, but she keeps the conversation focused on physical and emotional health, as here in Good Housekeeping. And in the meantime, she continues to steal every scene in pretty much every movie she’s in.
14. Kristen Bell
Though she’s played heroes (Veronica Mars) and villains (Sarah Marshall) on screen, the general consensus is that in real life, Kristen Bell is a total gem. Another reason to love her: She’s totally down-to-earth about her body, and refreshingly honest about Hollywood’s skewed standards. Bell’s quote is something to think about when you look at a picture of yourself — you are human. Give yourself a break! Featured photo credit: Gage Skidmore via flickr.com
