Rebel Wilson: Hollywood’s New Professional Fat Girl

Australian comedienne and actress Rebel Wilson debuted her new American sitcom last night. I had high hopes that “Super Fun Night” wouldn’t be an abysmal spew of fat jokes; Rebel seems far too talented for that and it really hasn’t been her style. The show, which she wrote and co-executive produced, accomplished what few comedies featuring overweight women ever pull off—Rebel’s role as lawyer Kimmie Boubier (last name “boob-ee-yay”) could have been performed by a woman of any size and been just as funny in the same way. The humor was focused on the fabulously unabashed nerdy-ness of Kimmie and her two best friends who try to bolster their social lives by picking entertainment ideas from a jar for a “Super Fun Night” out on the town. This first episode was not completely without jokes about food and weight but they were delivered with a deft touch and with such a universal appeal that anyone would relate. Even Rebel’s hilarious scene over the closing credits of her battle with a pair of Spanx would have women of all sizes finding the humor in the sometimes crazy concessions we make to fashion.

Compared to Melissa McCarthy, I think Rebel Wilson’s performances are relying less on her weight or presenting herself as a grotesque. As talented as she is, McCarthy has taken several roles portraying dumpy, deliberately unattractive, physically awkward characters and, of course, she shot to stardom as half of the endearingly funny and seriously overweight couple “Mike & Molly”. She plays her roles in a way that could not have the same effect were they performed by a thin actress. At just 27, Rebel has been successful in her native Australia for over a decade and even managed to fit in a university education in entertainment law. She’s brilliant and calls her own shots. But in some ways she’s still Hollywood’s latest “professional fat girl.”

Publicity photo from Rebel Wilson’s Jenny Craig campaign

Rebel became a celebrity spokesperson for Jenny Craig in Australia in 2011. Personally, I don’t think she’s the type who would have done that just for the money or if she wasn’t interested in making the commitment. In interviews she talked about her whole family joining her on the program and expressed the hope that she could stop wearing tracksuits and “all those tents and elastic waistbands.” I think she really wanted to do it and was upset when she announced in 2012 that she had to back out because her acting commitments were requiring that she not lose weight. To put this in perspective, it should be acknowledged that it’s not uncommon for an actor to be required to maintain the consistency of their appearance through the duration of a project. In Rebel’s case, producers are hiring a funny fat girl and it’s a funny fat girl they want to keep.

I’m sure that Rebel Wilson and executive producer Conan O’Brien would love to see “Super Fun Night” enjoy a long and profitable run. But would that success mean that Rebel will have to remain at her current weight, whether she wants to or not? She IS the co-executive producer, if she wanted to write weight loss into her character’s life, she could probably do it. However, it would mean making her weight loss efforts very public and inviting what could be an extreme level of media scrutiny into what should be her personal choices.

I’m not much for sitcoms but I plan on being a regular viewer of “Super Fun Night.” Rebel Wilson has a long career ahead of her and she’s likely to be called a “larger than life talent” many times over the years to come. She deserves a lot more than a transparent cliché.