Celebrities – male ones included – often have to suffer body shaming on the internet. From Wentworth Miller to Nick Jonas, it’s never easy – and recently, Grant Gustin became the latest target of such body shaming. And he took to Instagram to respond.
28-year-old Grant Gustin plays The Flash on the CW’s series, and with all due respect to Ezra Miller – he’s the hottest incarnation to date of the speedster. But when an on-set photo from the filming of Season 5 recently leaked online, “fans” – or more to the point, internet trolls – started getting angry.
The leaked photo showed Grant on set, wearing a new version of the Flash’s red suit. And according to disgruntled fans, he looked… too skinny in it. The fans demanded more muscles – and wanted Grant to “bulk up.”
Grant, who deleted his Twitter account, took to Instagram to respond.
“So here’s the thing about this bullshit photo leak”, he wrote. “It’s a cool suit. That’s a terrible photo that I was unaware was being taken, much less being posted. Some things need work and they will be worked on. We’ll get there.”
Grant goes on to write about the troubled history he had with his body.
“As far as the body shaming. That’s what pissed me off. Not even just for my sake. I’ve had 20+ years of kids and adults telling me or my parents I was too thin. I’ve had my own journey of accepting it. But there’s a double standard where it’s ok to talk shit about a dudes body.
I do my best to stay in shape and add as much size as I can throughout these seasons. I’m naturally thin, and my appetite is greatly affected by stress.”‘
Here’s the full statement:
A few days later, Grant posted the first official photo of the new suit:
Yep, we like it.
