Celebs Who Spoke Out About Using Weight-Loss Drugs

The following article contains references to disordered eating.

There's a new clique of stars in Tinseltown that many of its biggest players are bowing down to. They go by the names Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro. These drugs have become all the rage across celebrity strata, with some of the world's most prominent public figures — from Elon Musk to Billie Jean King — publicizing their use for weight loss. The bone of contention, which has sparked widespread debate in public and led to this cluster of medical aids to be dubbed controversial, lies in the fact that a majority of these drugs have actually been approved for treating diabetes.

Wegovy is the only semaglutide-based medication that the United States Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has signed off on as an obesity management prescription. Though Ozempic and Mounjaro essentially help control blood sugar levels, they have seen a surge in popularity among people wanting to lose weight, owing to their efficacy in controlling appetites. Notwithstanding warnings from certain medical quarters, these drugs have captured a global market that is expected to reach $100 billion by 2035, according to expert analysis (via Bloomberg). As these treatments enjoy their moment in the spotlight, here's a look at the celebrities who spoke out about using weight-loss drugs. 

As one of the most high-profile people in the world to have admitted to their use, Oprah Winfrey is practically the celebrity poster face of weight-loss drugs. The legendary talk show host — who has been hounded by body-shaming throughout her career and is a recognizable voice in the diet culture space — first opened up about taking weight-loss medication to People in 2023. "I realized I'd been blaming myself all these years for being overweight, and I have a predisposition that no amount of willpower is going to control," she said, noting that she used the unidentified prescription "as a tool to manage not yo-yoing." 

In 2024, Winfrey delved deeper into her disclosure in an ABC special titled "Shame, Blame and the Weight Loss Revolution," speaking to medical professionals about weight-loss medications in a bid to better explain obesity and end the shaming people face "for being overweight or how they choose to lose — or not lose — weight" (via ABC News). "The number one thing I hope people come away with is knowing that [obesity] is a disease, and it's in the brain," Winfrey said. 

It took Elon Musk all of three words to sum up the secret behind his weight transformation. "Fasting," he wrote on erstwhile Twitter in 2022, when he hadn't yet bought and changed the social media platform to X. "He followed that up with a second tweet: "And Wegovy." He was responding to a user curious about what the Tesla billionaire was doing to "look awesome, fit, ripped & healthy." The disclosure, made as matter-of-factly as possible, gave Wegovy renewed validation as it began being described widely as the weight-loss drug that had the stamp of approval from one of the world's richest people. 

Within a year of Musk's post, it was reported that Novo Nordisk — the healthcare giant behind drugs like Wegovy and Ozempic — was valued at over $400 billion, surpassing the economy of its native country Denmark. Unlike its counterpart Ozempic, which was approved by the FDA for treating type 2 diabetes, Wegovy was given legitimacy as a weight management drug from the get-go in 2021. 

Screen legend Whoopi Goldberg has been candid, and unapologetically so, about using a weight-loss drug to shed some pounds. With the use of Mounjaro, a medication used off-label for weight loss, the "Ghost" star managed to lose the weight of "almost two people," she revealed on "The Kelly Clarkson Show" in 2024. "I'm doing that wonderful shot that works for folks who need some help and it's been really good for me," Goldberg told host Kelly Clarkson.

Goldberg's motivation for change came around the time she was filming the 2022 feature "Till" and was closing in on 300 pounds. Her appearance in the film sparked claims that the Oscar awardee wore a "fat suit" for the role, which Goldberg denied. However, the incident did bring about a shift in Goldberg's perspective regarding her weight. "I just always felt like me, and then I saw me and thought, 'Oh, that's a lot of me,'" she said on "The View." The panel also discussed the polarizing issue of diabetes drugs being used for weight loss, with Goldberg remarking, "You have to take responsibility for yourself and see what's going on with your body." 

Kelly Clarkson has been on a health journey for years. The reason some people sat up and took note only now is because the Grammy winner opened up about the use of medication to attain her weight goals. Clarkson was interviewing Whoopi Goldberg on "The Kelly Clarkson Show" when the conversation turned to weight-loss and both women acknowledged they had opted for treatments. Though Clarkson did not name the medication she took, she was quick to clarify it wasn't Ozempic. The singer, who was diagnosed as pre-diabetic, said that the medicine was "something that aids in helping break down the sugar" and that she avoided it for quite a while before trying it. "My doctor chased me for two years, and I was like, 'No, I'm afraid of it. I already have thyroid problems," she said.

Clarkson has been dealing with thyroid and other autoimmune issues since 2006 and, at her heaviest, she weighed 203 pounds. By 2018, she was down by 37 pounds, owing to changes in her diet. She told Today's Hoda Kotb at the time, "I don't really take medicine unless I absolutely need it." She further iterated that for her, the weight transformation was a milestone not for how it changed her appearance but the fact that it helped her cut down on her thyroid medication intake.

Rebel Wilson ruled over Hollywood's niche of funny, heavier characters for a long time — until she escaped the trope. Since 2020, which the actor called her "year of health," Wilson has been on a transformation journey that led her to shed up to 80 pounds. This decision followed a doctor's visit during which she learned that her fertility process would be much smoother if she were healthier. "I thought of a future child's needs that really inspired me to get healthier," she told People. Her newfound passion for health prompted Wilson to re-evaluate her emotional eating tendencies and relationship with food at large, with some support from Ozempic.  

"Someone like me could have a bottomless appetite for sweets, so I think those drugs can be good," she told The Times in 2024, noting that she took Ozempic for a little while in order to maintain her weight-loss and that she wasn't taking it any longer. Wilson's push for a healthier lifestyle apparently didn't win support from certain quarters, which claimed that a change of appearance would be bad for business for the "Pitch Perfect" star whose career was near-synonymous with bankable roles like Fat Amy. As she put it: "Basically no one apart from my mum wanted me to lose weight." 

When Tracy Morgan, whose belly-flashing antics have been a longtime staple of his comedy career, stopped by "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon" in 2024 and was asked by the host what he had been doing to stay in shape. He answered without missing a beat: Ozempic. The frankness inspired laughs from the audience. But what Morgan said next would likely have caused many takers of the weight-loss drug to get into a flap. 

"I've learned to out-eat Ozempic. I've gained 40 pounds," Morgan said, to which Fallon replied: "I've never heard of anyone gaining 40." The claim made headlines but should have been taken with a pinch of salt, coming from a stand-up comedian — and a "Saturday Night Live" alum at that.

Morgan later clarified to E! News that his comment about Ozempic's inefficacy was made in jest. "That was just a joke," he said. "Ozempic did great by me and I was glad to use it." He went on to explain that the weekly injections had helped cut down his appetite to just "half a bag of Doritos."  

"What can I say, the peptides are giving me a new pep," fashionista Margaret Josephs effused to People in 2023. The "Real Housewives of New Jersey" is yet another celebrity who has found favorable results with the weight-loss drugs doing the rounds in the showbiz circuit. According to Josephs, her advancing age was making it hard for her to shed pounds and she struggled to maintain any kind of weight stability even with a healthier lifestyle."I was perimenopausal, your hormones start to change," she said. "I had started gaining weight in different spots." 

The new regimen Josephs tried included peptide injections and, within a year, brought her down to 126 pounds — the weight she was at some 30 years ago. "More than anything, I feel great," Josephs raved, detailing how the treatment had even positively impacted all other aspects of her life, from her bones to her skin. Unlike many of her colleagues in entertainment, Josephs has been emphatic about the responsibility celebrities have of being truthful with their fans when it comes to body transformations. As she said on Sherri Shepherd's show, pointing to her face: "This is not natural. ... No one wakes up like this." 

Amy Schumer is as real as she is funny. The comedian has been more than open about her weight changes — both gains and losses. During an appearance on "Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen" in 2023, Schumer spoke candidly about her less-than-satisfactory experience with Ozempic and how the side effects of the viral drug didn't prove to be "livable" for her. "I was one of those people that felt so sick and couldn't play with my son," she explained. Though her own trial of the drug fell short, Schumer remarked that its use among celebrities was higher than what they'd like to reveal to the public. 

Besides weight-loss drugs, Schumer has also admitted to trying liposuction because, as she told The Hollywood Reporter, "I'd reached a place where I was tired of looking at myself in the mirror." The procedure, which brought her down to 170 pounds, didn't leave Schumer with any regrets — evident in an Instagram post she made in 2022 where she shared about it and proclaimed, "I feel good." In 2024, Schumer revealed that she'd been diagnosed with Cushing syndrome when conversations about her "moon face" took over the internet after an appearance she made on Jimmy Fallon's show. 

The spread of weight-loss medications isn't just limited to Hollywood circuits. Sports icons like Charles Barkley have admitted to taking weight-loss drugs that are dividing audiences. The NBA legend appeared on the "Dan Patrick Show" in 2023, discussing the massive drop in his weight after he began a course of Mounjaro, which — along with a workout routine — helped Barkley go from 352 pounds to 290 pounds in just five months. "I feel great," he said.  

It was apparently a remark from Barkley's doctor that spurred him to action over his weight. "If you don't get this stuff together you're not gonna be around," he recalled her saying on an NHL on TNT panel. Though procedures like hip replacement surgery caused the 6'4 basketball champion's weight to fluctuate by as much as 100 pounds, his new health regimen brought him much closer to his playing weight of 250 pounds. During a heart-to-heart with Oprah Winfrey, who appeared on his CNN show "King Charles" soon after her 2024 TV special on weight loss, Barkley opined, "There's so many different ways to lose weight. There's no shoe size that fits all." 

Unlike other celebrities who willingly opt in for medications to bring down their weight, Chelsea Handler claimed she was put on them involuntarily and without knowledge. Describing her curious experience with Ozempic on the "Call Her Daddy" podcast in 2023, the comedian revealed that she was prescribed semaglutide by her anti-aging doctor. Unaware that it was the very drug famous on the market as Ozempic, Handler took the injection, which her doctor said was great for dropping a few pounds. 

She realized what it was only some days later when she met up with a friend who said she felt nauseous since she was on Ozempic. "And I was like, 'I'm kind of nauseous too.' But I had just come back from Spain, I thought I was jet-lagged," Handler recalled. It was then that her friend told her that she'd actually been taking Ozempic. "I'm not on it anymore. That's too irresponsible," she stated. Though she disavowed the use of the popular drug, saying she felt it would eventually "backfire," she later appeared on Etalk and called the medication "a miracle for anyone who's ever struggled with their weight." 

It's a misconception that healthy lifestyles come easy to those in sports. As tennis legend Billie Jean King has shown, even the most athletic people might call for help from time to time. King aired her thoughts about the weight-loss sensation that is Ozempic on Julia Louis-Dreyfus' "Wiser Than Me" podcast in 2024, saying that she had taken a few shots of it upon her doctor's advice. "With an eating disorder, I have two voices in my head sometimes that argue," she told the Seinfeld actor, expressing wonder at the potential of Ozempic to "quiet the voices" in her head. 

Though the drug intrigued her, 80-year-old King didn't seem fully convinced about the drastic physical impact it has. "I don't want to lose weight fast because I think it looks horrible. I don't think it's healthy. I would like to lose it slowly," she said. Over two decades after she retired from tennis, the former world No. 1 was diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, which Ozempic is FDA- approved to treat. King has been open about her years-long experience with binge-eating and health struggles, for which she has sought therapy. 

If you need help with an eating disorder, or know someone who does, help is available. Visit the National Eating Disorders Association website or contact NEDA's Live Helpline at 1-800-931-2237. You can also receive 24/7 Crisis Support via text (send NEDA to 741-741).

Sharon Osbourne has always spoken straight from the shoulder about the years of cosmetic procedures and treatments she has undergone. As such, it was hardly shocking when she opened up about her use of Ozempic during her seemingly endless journey of transformation. It was, however, unusual to see a celebrity talk as honestly about the drawbacks of the weight-loss drug as she has. "You can lose so much weight and it's easy to become addicted to that, which is very dangerous," she told the Daily Mail in 2023, a year after she started on Ozempic injections. 

The drug brought Osbourne's weight down by over 40 pounds, which was more than what she would have liked. "I'm too gaunt and I can't put any weight on. I want to, because I feel I'm too skinny," she said, also warning against making this drug available among younger generations. Despite the mixed feelings she has about the drug, Osbourne, much like her daughter Kelly, supports free choice in the matter. As she told E! News, "It's not a dirty little secret when you've taken something to help you lose weight, which is perfectly fine." 

Former reality TV star Jon Gosselin hasn't simply spoken out about weight-loss drugs. In fact, he has raved about them to the extent that he regrets not having started them a decade ago. "It's really nice because it helped me stop drinking and it helped me get my appetite under control with less eating," he told Page Six at the opening of the Beverly Hills Rejuvenation Center in 2024. Gosselin underwent fat reduction procedures at the West Hollywood facility, which touts itself as a medical spa and offers treatments that involve the use of semaglutide, the diabetes medication that gives Ozempic its distinction. "You can do a million crunches but sometimes you just can't tighten up that skin," Gosselin said.  

According to ET Online, Gosselin's decision to try the drug stemmed from fluctuations in his weight, owing to his hectic work schedule as a DJ. "I just got complacent with my health." He had reportedly witnessed the effects of Ozempic up close when his girlfriend Stephanie Lebo used it to shed some pounds. With help from the rejuvenation center — which his daughter Hannah also went to for weight loss — Gosselin managed to drop 32 pounds in a matter of two months. 

While some in the medical community have cautioned against the use of diabetes drugs as weight-loss medications, but Dr. Terry Dubrow is not one of them. The plastic surgeon and host of reality TV series "Botched" has given glowing reviews of Ozempic, even calling it "the biggest medical breakthrough in history," according to Us Weekly. Dubrow pointed to the fact that these semaglutide medications going viral at the moment were hardly new inventions and had been studied thoroughly. "It's really good as a reset, or you get down to the body weight you want, you either stay on it, on a low dose, or you go off it and say, 'OK, I'm going to make better food choices.'"

The celebrity doctor's endorsement of Ozempic and Mounjaro can be backed by his personal experiences with both drugs. He told E! News in 2024 that he gave Mounjaro a shot after witnessing its popularity among his patients. "I thought it was amazing. I didn't have that much weight to lose," he said. Drugs like Mounjaro cut down a person's appetite and can lead to side effects like nausea, and Dubrow cited both as reasons for eventually going off the drug. He was keener to give Ozempic a try again after briefly testing it.