Oprah Winfrey recalls Joan Rivers' blunt body-shaming on 'The Tonight Show'

Oprah Winfrey recently opened up about a deeply personal and painful experience from her early career, recalling how Joan Rivers publicly body-shamed her during her first appearance on “The Tonight Show” in 1985. 

Speaking on the “Jamie Kern Lima Show” podcast, the media mogul shared the shocking moment when Rivers, instead of discussing Winfrey's rising success with “A.M. Chicago,” focused on her weight.

“Joan Rivers turns to me and she says, ‘Tell me, why are you so fat?’” Winfrey recalled.

Stunned by the public call-out, Winfrey managed to respond with, “Oh, I just love potato chips, Joan,” to which Rivers replied, “Shame on you,” and added, “I’ll let you come back if you lose 15 lbs. You need to lose 15 lbs.”

Winfrey admitted that at the time, she internalized the shame, believing she deserved it. “I accept[ed] that I should be shamed, because how dare me, be sitting up here on ‘The Tonight Show.’” 

She even vowed to lose the weight, though she later confessed to Lima, “Of course, I didn’t lose the 15 lbs. I went and ate my way to another 10 lbs.”

This encounter led Winfrey to enroll in a “health retreat” to slim down, known as “fat farms” at the time. 

She also recalled praying and crying over potentially losing out on a role in “The Color Purple” due to her weight until director Steven Spielberg reassured her with a phone call, warning, “You lose a pound, you could lose this part.”

Winfrey went on to star in the film, earning an Oscar nomination for Best Supporting Actress for her role as Sofia. 

This experience became her “greatest life lesson,” teaching her to work hard and then let go.

Throughout her career, Winfrey has been vocal about the discrimination she faced due to her weight. 

In December, she confirmed using a weight loss drug, though she did not specify which one, amid a trend of celebrities using drugs like Ozempic or Mounjaro off-label for weight loss.

Winfrey apologized in May for her role in promoting toxic diet culture, citing her infamous “wagon of fat” moment on “The Oprah Winfrey Show” in the late ’80s as a significant regret.