GLP-1 Weight-Loss Drugs Are Impacting Hollywood Performers, The Daily Beast Reports
- Hollywood's widespread adoption of GLP-1 weight-loss medications is altering daily operations for performers, vocal coaches, and crew members across Broadway productions and film sets, The Daily Beast reported.
- Production vocal coaches working on Broadway productions like Buena Vista Social Club and Girl from the North Country are managing new physical demands from actors and singers taking...
- We were dealing with dry mouth and vocal cord gravel way back when.
Hollywood’s widespread adoption of GLP-1 weight-loss medications is altering daily operations for performers, vocal coaches, and crew members across Broadway productions and film sets, The Daily Beast reported. Eleven percent of U.S. adults reported using a GLP-1 medication for weight loss in July 2026, marking a significant rise from 3 percent in 2024, according to a Gallup survey.
Vocal Coaches Report Dryness And Fatigue On Set
Production vocal coaches working on Broadway productions like Buena Vista Social Club
and Girl from the North Country
are managing new physical demands from actors and singers taking the drugs. Aimée Steele told Women’s Health that she sees pharmaceutical side effects replacing older ones in rehearsal rooms.
We were dealing with dry mouth and vocal cord gravel way back when. It used to be the SSRI dryness, then decongestant dryness. Now it’s GLP-1 dryness.
Aimée Steele
Steele noted that performers balancing eight shows a week while experiencing nausea, acid reflux, and fatigue struggle to maintain adequate nutrition and hydration. Those adverse physical reactions mirror common side effects listed in Wegovy’s prescribing information, which includes nausea, vomiting, constipation, fatigue, and gastroesophageal reflux disease.
Entertainers Report Debilitating Side Effects from Semaglutide
High-profile entertainers have spoken openly about the debilitating toll of semaglutide and similar drugs. Comedian Amy Schumer told Howard Stern in 2025 that semaglutide left her bedridden, vomiting, and too exhausted to play with her son after losing over 30 pounds on Ozempic. I looked great and I couldn’t lift my head off the pillow, so what’s the point?
Schumer said before discontinuing the medication.
Singer Macy Gray experienced similar complications while filming MTV’s The Surreal Life
in 2024. Gray stated that Ozempic left her constipated and awake at night with severe stomach pain.
Catering Crews And Costume Shops Adapt To Smaller Portions
Production support staff are adjusting catering orders to match shifting dietary habits on set. Kinyarda Wright, owner of Around the Clock Craft Services, observed that crews and talent frequently leave more leftover food while gravitating toward protein-heavy options. During a Gucci campaign shoot, workers bypassed full meals in favor of apple chips and sugar snap peas.
Costume departments face regular adjustments as performers’ body measurements fluctuate. Broadway costume designers James Nguyen and AC Gottlieb noted that resizing garments for changing bodies remains standard practice regardless of whether weight loss stems from rehearsals, muscle gain, pregnancy, or medication.
Energy Boosts And Body Confidence For Users
Other public figures report positive physical outcomes from the medications. Serena Williams told SELF in January that she began taking Zepbound after struggling to lose weight following the birth of her second daughter. When I started, I just had more energy,
Williams said, adding that the medication made it easier to keep up with her two-year-old daughter, Adira.
Steele observed similar psychological and physical benefits among vocal students who gained confidence after losing weight. When you have a human being that feels better in their body, they’re going to feel that confidence and that mental burden that’s lifted,
she said.