Eilish faced the wrath of trolls after photos were published of her out and about in L.A. in October.
Kat Dennings is sharing why it was so important for her to defend 18-year-old musician Billie Eilish against internet trolls who body-shamed her. Eilish faced the wrath of trolls after photos were published of her out and about in Los Angeles, California, in October.
The photos showed Eilish ditching the baggy clothing she is frequently seen in for a tank top and shorts, which drew some negative comments.
“As someone who looked exactly like that at her age, it’d be nice for this unhealthy nonsense to f**k right off,” Dennings tweeted in response. “She’s beautiful and normal goodbye!”
Speaking to ET’s Katie Krause while promoting her new film, Friendsgiving, Dennings described the troll behavior as “gross.”
“Any woman in the spotlight is already under a tremendous amount of pressure and the internet is gross and awful and I hate it,” she said. “I don't know if it's because she's so young and it just feels so inappropriate for anyone to comment on any young person’s body. People forget themselves because the internet is this wall they can hide behind.”
“I felt personally affronted by it because she's a beautifully young girl who is making unbelievable, earth-changing art,” Dennings, 34, continued. “I mentioned in my tweet that I looked exactly like that when I was her age and I had a horrible time. Things have improved as far as body image for girls and boys and everybody -- things are more inclusive now. But when I was growing up it was not like that. I hope people know that people are in their corner and that [body-shaming] is not okay.”
While Dennings may have had rough times with her body image growing up, it didn’t stop her from becoming a successful screen star who’s frequently turning heads with her beauty and style.
In Friendsgiving, she portrays Abby, a woman who finds herself across the country from her family during Thanksgiving and simply hopes to spend the holiday with her bestie, “moping about her breakup and just eat a bunch of snacks and go to sleep early.”
“Which is very relatable!” Dennings saID. “Then her best friend who is going through a divorce is like, ‘Forget it. I want to be surrounded by people and forget about everything.’ So this is what happens when two friends who are both heartbroken want to do one day very differently.”
“It's great because there aren't many Thanksgiving movies,” Dennings added. “There's aren't many movies for us, especially if you don't spend Thanksgiving with your family.
The film features cameos from the likes of Jane Seymour, Wanda Sykes and Margaret Cho. Dennings said the unexpected cameos are one reason the movie’s a must-watch, in addition to the film being fun, light-heated, nostalgic -- and featuring a scene in which she kisses Aisha Tyler. “That’s a bonus!” she laughed.
“It was really fun,” Dennings added about locking lips with Tyler. “I enjoyed it much more than when I have to make out with male actors. There's something about kissing or a love scene that's always a little uncomfortable. It really depends on your relationship with the other actor, man or lady. But Aisha -- I love her so much and we became so close so quickly, so it was like kissing my friend.”
As for her love life off-screen, Dennings recently tweeted that she was looking for someone to marry in New Zealand, in order to gain citizenship to the country, whose Prime Minster, Jacinda Ardern, has impressively managed the coronavirus pandemic in recent months.
"But seriously, who in New Zealand will enter into a loveless marriage with me for citizenship?" Dennings posted on social media.
So, has she had any offers from prospective Kiwi partners?
“Shockingly I have had some and I quickly realized it was not a great thing to do,” she dished. “I [tweeted] in the heat of the moment of the situation with COVID in the States. I'm just so saddened by the situation we’re in here, versus some place like New Zealand that has got it under control in a pretty short amount of time.”
“And, in my saddest times I'm like, ‘Why can't we do this?!’” she continued. “It's so unfair to everybody, but I'm just going to tough it out. Hopefully I'll fall in love with this New Zealand person … but probably I’ll just stay where I am!”
See more on Dennings below.
Friendsgiving is now available in theaters, On Demand, Digital, Blu-Ray and DVD.
RELATED CONTENT:
