Gabourey Sidibe (Wikipedia)
An “Empire” star recently revealed a dramatic new look. Gabourey Sidibe posted a photo of her incredible weight loss on Instagram Aug. 29 and earned praise from her fans.
The 33-year-old actress captioned the side-by-side image, “Is it too early in the morning for selfies with a Mayfair filter?”
The news follows a steady flow of fake weight loss ads and stories over the years. One advertisement frequently touts her as a star that will stun readers with her transformation.
Days before Sidibe shared the image of her new shape, Time To Break posted an image claiming the Precious actress is now “living up to her beautiful name.”
She made her Hollywood debut in 2009 as Precious, but now 7 years on she is living up to her beautiful name. WOW! https://t.co/FBHS3EGZkn
— Time To Break (@timetobreaknow) August 25, 2016
Upon investigating further, readers were greeted with an image of former “Glee” star Amber Riley as the after photo.
The movie star responded on Twitter, the same day evoking rapper Birdman’s catch phrase and calling out the racist action.
1) My name is Gabourey Sidibe. Put some RESPEK on it! 2) Amber Riley and I are not the same person. 3) 🖕🏿 https://t.co/zuSUb6rs28
— Gabby Sidibe (@GabbySidibe) August 26, 2016
In the past, Sidibe struggled with her weight, something she discussed with Oprah in 2009.
“It’s something I’ve had to work at. My first diet started when I was six years old,” Gabby revealed. “I’ve never been a small girl. One day I had to sit down with myself and decide that I loved myself no matter what my body looked like and what other people thought about my body.”
Ahead of her Precious movie debut, the film’s director Lee Daniels complimented her confidence but said she is “either in denial about her physicality or from another planet.”
Sidibe shared she only became comfortable with her curves in her early twenties.
“I got tired of feeling bad all the time. I got tired of hating myself.”
Presently, the actress’ size has not stopped her from embracing her sexuality. In March, Sidibe stripped down for a photoshoot with V Magazine. She wore nothing but a lingerie slip gown.
