20 Famous Plus-Size Women Who Inspire the World

20 Famous Plus-Size Women Who Inspire the World

In the recent couple of years, there has been an emerging movement of body positivity which celebrates all body types. Previously the standard of beauty was defined as those with a lea body but now we have plus-size women who are boldly embracing their bodies publicly. These women are using their social media platforms to challenge traditional beauty standards and inspire others to embrace their bodies.

These women speak with one voice which is self-love and acceptance towards their bodies. They demonstrate that it is possible to be beautiful and confident even as a plus-size woman. Their goal is to change the world’s perspective on beauty standards and inspire many women while at it. In this article, we highlight 20 famous plus-size women who inspire the world.

1. Queen Latifah

Queen Latifah, is an American Actress, rapper and singer. She has received various accolades for her music. In 2006, she became the first hip-hop artist to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. 

Queen Latifah remains an icon of body positivity. In 2020, Vogue editor Janelle Okwodu considered her a fashion icon that helped to start a conversation about body image that continues to this day, crediting her among the first artists that pioneered the climate of size inclusivity and muses of all shapes.

2. Melissa McCarthy

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Melissa McCarthy is an American actress, screenwriter, and producer. McCarthy is a body positivity advocate. In 2015, she launched her own clothing line for plus-sized women, named Melissa McCarthy Seven7.

The line includes clothes up to size 28. In an interview with More, McCarthy stated that “people don’t stop at size 12. I feel like there’s a big thing missing where you can’t dress to your mood above a certain number.

3. Rebel Wilson

Rebel Wilson is an Australian actress, comedian, writer, singer, and producer. Throughout her career, Wilson has been known for her plus-sized figure and would often play to it in her acting work with characters such as Fat Amy.

Wilson felt lucky to have her body type and stated that people in the industry would tell her not to lose weight. “For me, I think it’s about being comfortable in your own skin. I never want to be too unhealthy, because that’s bad. You just want to be comfortable with who you are at whatever size”, she said. In 2017, Wilson launched a plus-sized clothing range called Rebel Wilson x Angels on the heels of a collaboration with Torrid. Read more about Rebel Wilson and her sexuality. 

4. Lizzo

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Lizzo is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, actress and musician. After struggling with body issues at an early age, Lizzo became an advocate for body positivity and self-love as she attracted more mainstream attention. 

She is considered a role model and advocate for body positivity and self-confidence. She partially credits social media, for changing the narrative around plus-size and giving visibility to overweight women. Highlighting body inclusivity and celebrating individuality, Lizzo appeared in ModCloth’s Say It Louder campaign, which launched on June 11, 2018.

5. Tess Holliday

Tess Holliday is an American plus-size model, blogger, and make-up artist based in Los Angeles. Holliday also self-describes as a body-positive activist. In 2013, she started her #effyourbeautystandards movement on Instagram. 

Holliday claims the movement shows women that they do not have to be a certain size to love their bodies and that their size should not dictate their fashion choices. She has said that the movement has led to women letting her know that they now feel good about how they look and wear what they like. She also talks at public events about body confidence.

6. Ashley Graham

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Ashley Graham is an American plus-sized model and television presenter. Graham made her debut on the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue in 2016. A year later, she published her first book, A New Model: What Confidence, Beauty, and Power Really Look Like, which contributes to her advocacy in the body positivity and inclusion movement.

Graham gave a TED Talk advocating self-acceptance with regard to body image. Graham has been praised by women on Instagram for sharing photos showing her cellulite. In an interview with Vogue, she said, “I definitely think that my body has changed many people’s lives. I’ve used my body as a tool to talk about taboo subjects, such as cellulite or being insecure about lower belly fat and also how to talk life into your body and have an affirmation kind of conversation with yourself.” Read more about 15 Instagram Famous People You Need to Follow. 

7. Iskra Lawrence

Iskra Lawrence is a British model. In 2017, Lawrence appeared in the Straight Curve documentary about body image and the industry leaders challenging society’s unrealistic and dangerous standards of beauty.

Lawrence does not retouch her own images that she posts on social media platforms such as Instagram and Facebook. She actively criticizes body shamers and is a proponent of body positivity.

8. Denise Bidot

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Denise Bidot is an American plus-size fashion model. Bidot started her acting career at a young age but faced challenges with being told to lose weight in order to make it in acting. She was then discovered by a photographer who had approached her about getting into modelling, to which she agreed.

In 2014, Bidot became the first plus-size model to walk the runway for two straight-size brands during New York Fashion Week. In 2016, Bidot launched a lifestyle movement called There Is No Wrong Way to Be a Woman. In December 2016, Bidot’s picture of her wearing a two piece bathing suit in Lane Bryant’s new resort collection ad campaign with the photo unretouched showing her stretch marks went viral within hours.

9. Nadia Aboulhosn

Nadia Aboulhosn is an American fashion blogger, model, and designer.  Her blogging career began as something she did in her spare time and now she is a full-time fashion blogger.

Nadia advocates for the body positivity movement and self-acceptance. Her first modelling shoot was with Seventeen magazine for a curvy section. She was named the face of boohoo.com and took a partnership where she was also able to release her own collection which did really well.

10. Hunter McGrady

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Hunter McGrady is an American plus-size model. She started plus-size modelling when she was 19 years old. In 2017, she became the largest model as a size 16 to appear in a Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue. In 2019, she was the first plus-size model on the cover of The Knot.

11. Precious Lee

Precious Lee is an American model. She has gained prominence as one of few Black curvy models to work with longstanding fashion houses. She has walked for Versace, Moschino and Fendi.

She started her career doing catalogue shoots and modelled part-time as an undergraduate. Lee fulfilled a lifelong aspiration when she walked in the spring 2021 Versace show and was one of three curvy models to do so for the first time in the history of the brand.

12. Octavia Spencer

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Octavia Spencer is an American actress and producer. She is a body-positive influencer even on her stage as an actress. She is the recipient of several accolades, including an Academy Award, a British Academy Film Award, and a Golden Globe Award, and is the first black actress to receive two consecutive Oscar nominations. Here are 10 Things To Know About Octavia Spencer. 

13. Dawn French

Dawn French is a British actress, comedian, presenter and writer. French has said that her self-confidence and self-belief stem from her father, who told her how beautiful she was each day. She stated, “He taught me to value myself. He told me that I was beautiful and the most precious thing in his life.”

14. Amber Riley

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Amber Riley is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her portrayal of Mercedes Jones on the Fox comedy-drama series Glee. For her performance on the series, she and the rest of the cast won a Screen Actors Guild Award, and have been nominated for three Teen Choice Awards, three NAACP Image Awards, and a Grammy Award.

As a body-positivity influencer, In January 2014, Riley and her sister Ashley launched a plus-size online clothing boutique, Rileyland Fashions. She also models the garments.

15. Deborah Roberts

Deborah Roberts is an American television journalist for the ABC News division of the ABC broadcast television network. In 1992, Roberts was awarded the University of Georgia Distinguished Alumnus Award for her rapid success as a journalist. Roberts has won an Emmy Award and a Clarion Award for her reporting.

16. Gabourey Sidibe

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Gabourey Sidibe is an American actress. She made her acting debut in the 2009 film Precious, a role that earned her the Independent Spirit Award for Best Female Lead. Growing up, Sidibe lived with her aunt, feminist activist Dorothy Pitman Hughes. She impacted Sidibe’s outlook on her body and she became comfortable in her skin and body and continues to champion the same with other girls.

17. Jameela Jamil

Jameela Jamil is a British actress, activist, podcaster, television host and judge. In April 2020, she debuted her podcast I Weigh with Jameela Jamil, which focuses on women’s accomplishments, body positivity, activism and racial inclusivity.

Using social media, Jamil often criticises media industry standards and labels other female celebrities as double agents of the patriarchy by promoting unhealthy body image, often invoking her own experience of having an eating disorder in her arguments.

18. Toccara Jones

Toccara Jones is an American television personality, fashion model, occasional actress and singer. Jones was a contestant on the third season of the UPN series America’s Next Top Model. 

Since then, Jones signed with Wilhelmina Models as a plus-size model. Jones was also selected to be part of the 2007 Rocawear I Will Not Lose campaign representing the Rocawear plus-size line for full-figured females.

19. Mia Tyler

Mia Tyler is an American actress, model, media personality and socialite. Primarily a fashion model, she has been represented by the modelling agency Wilhelmina Models. She has also appeared on the runways of New York and Paris. Tyler launched her own clothing line, Revolution 1228, in February 2009.

20. Emme Aronson

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Emme Aronson is an American plus-size model, social reformer and body image advocate. Emme gained worldwide fame as the first full-figured model chosen for People magazine’s 50 Most Beautiful People, first in 1994, then for a second time in 1999. 

Emme is largely recognized in the 1990s as the leading model in the profession, as well as its highest earner. In 1998, she was the first plus-size model to be a spokesperson for Revlon. A 16″ collectable doll bearing Emme’s name and likeness generates money to benefit body image and self-esteem organizations.

In conclusion, we can see how these women embody body positivity and use it as a tool to advance the agenda that all women should be comfortable in their bodies. They serve as champions for many women who are battling body image issues and they have influenced many women to live confidently and fully embrace their bodies.