Has Jennifer Hudson Lost Too Much Weight?

Jennifer Hudson started her career as a contestant on "American Idol." Though she did not win in the end she did go onto bigger and better things than almost any other contestant from that show, even the winners. She won the Oscar for her very first film role in "Dreamgirls," completely upstaging the better known Beyonce Knowles. She's become well known for her upbeat personality, her powerful voice and for having a few noticeable curves to her figure. Though never really entering into the territory of obese, Hudson was heavier than most actresses or pop singers. Determined to bring her weight down she's become the spokes person for Weight Watchers and has dropped quite a bit of weight over the last year or so. Perhaps she's lost a little too much weight.

To be clear the purpose of this article is not in any way to imply that Jennifer Hudson is anorexic or is at an healthy weight. She does not in any way appear to have any kind of eating disorder nor has her weight loss been so drastic or sudden as to imply anything but a healthy diet and exercise. Losing weight to be healthier is of course only a good thing. However Hudson seems to have taken it beyond merely getting to a healthy weight and now seems to be trying to look like every other skinny actress and singer in Hollywood. If that's her goal she's succeeding, and in the process eliminating part of what made her unique.

There have been more than a few examples over the years of Hollywood actors and singers who's altered their bodies in ways that hurt their careers. Obviously the biggest culprit isn't weight, it's usually plastic surgery. However surgery doesn't have to be drastic or overdone to hurt a career. Take Jennifer Grey, known for such films as "Ferris Bueller's Day Off" and "Dirty Dancing." Grey has a nose job done in the early 1990s and the results were hardly a horror show, in fact she looked quite nice. However it changed her appearance so drastically that even close friends didn't recognize her at first and her career suffered greatly because she didn't look like the girl audiences had fallen in love with. Jennifer Hudson has not undergone surgery, however she has changed one of her noted and defining features, much as Grey did with her nose. By changing her body outline and silhouette Hudson no longer stands out from the crowd, instead she blends into a sea of similarly bodied starlets.

In her weight watcher commercials that are still airing Hudson had clearly lost weight but she still had enough curves that she was immediately identifiable. However in her more recent appearances since shooting those commercials, such as on "The Ellen Degeneres Show" and the 83rd Oscars she's lost enough weight that her curves have all but vanished. She still has a powerhouse voice but now to look at her she's almost indistinguishable from skinny singers like Rhianna and a dozen other pop divas. Ironically R&B and hip hop music are some of the few genres that seems to tolerate larger women, with such mega stars as Queen Latifah and Aretha Franklin being the best examples.

Having reinvented herself physically it will now fall to Hudson to reinvent the perceptions of her within the industry. This is going to be more vital if she wishes to continue acting. With her music it's not quite as important, her weight may go up or down but her voice will always be amazing. Since movies and TV are a visual medium she's now no longer is a physical match for the kind of roles studios and audiences have come to think of her in. What's more she will have far more competition for acting roles because she's now the same build as most of Hollywood's starlets. If she hopes to continue acting she needs to find a role she can redefine herself as, so that audiences will accept this new body she's worked so hard on.