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“Gross”: Jennifer Love Hewitt Breaks Silence On “Grown Men” Joking About Her Breasts At 16
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“Gross”: Jennifer Love Hewitt Breaks Silence On “Grown Men” Joking About Her Breasts At 16

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Jennifer Love Hewitt reflected on the inappropriate comments directed at her when she was sixteen.

The actress, now 45, landed her breakout role in the 1995 teen drama Party Of Five and rose to fame after starring in 1997’s I Know What You Did Last Summer.

Jennifer opened up about the negative consequences of being in the spotlight as a teen during an episode of Dr. Mayim Bialik’s Breakdown podcast.

Highlights
  • Jennifer Love Hewitt discussed hurtful comments about her body at age 16.
  • The actress reflected on how culture once accepted inappropriate jokes about underage girls.
  • Jennifer said she wore oversized clothes so that grown men would stop commenting on her body.
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    Image credits: Vinnie Zuffante/Getty Images

    Image credits: Ron Galella, Ltd./Ron Galella Collection via Getty Images

    “There were grown men talking to me at 16 about my breasts openly on a talk show, and people were laughing about it,”she shared on Tuesday (January 28).

    “It was a culture that was fully accepted, but when you sit, and you look at where we are now versus then, it is really mind-blowing.

    “In hindsight, it was really strange, I think, to become a sex symbol before I even knew what that was. I didn’t know what being sexy meant.”

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    “It was a culture that was fully accepted, but when you sit and you look at where we are now versus then, it is really mind-blowing,” the Client List actress said

    Image credits: Dr. Mayim Bialik

    Jokes about her breasts became normalized after she starred in thehorror filmI Know What You Did Last Summer, Jennifer shared.

    At the time, she didn’t stop to think whether the jokes were appropriate. She went along with them because no one around her seemed to question it either.

    “When the movie came out, everybody said, ‘Oh, I know what your breasts did last summer,’ and that was, like, the joke.

    “And, again, everybody would laugh, so I would laugh. It was supposed to be funny, I guess.

    “It didn’t register with me that this is a grown man talking to me about my breasts on national television.”

    Image credits: Dr. Mayim Bialik

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    Jennifer said she found it upsetting that people were constantlycommenting on her body instead of focusing on her acting skills.

    “I had worked so hard trying to be good in ahorror movie, and I really wanted people to walk away from the movie going, ‘That’s a really good actress.’ 

    “And instead, every headline — and I’m not even joking — for 10 or 12 years after that, it was always about my breasts, always first…That was heartbreaking for me.”

    Jennifer said she laughed along because she didn’t understand how inappropriate the jokes were at the time

    Image credits: Dr. Mayim Bialik

    The Client List star further revealed that she wore oversized clothes to hide her figure because she felt “embarrassed” by men looking at her curves.

    “I had bigger boobs for a smaller person, and so it was embarrassing. I didn’t want to be looked at by a 40-year-old in Pizza Hut.”

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    Despite the discomfort these jokes bring to her now, Jennifer said she doesn’t “blame” those who commented on her body.

    “It was a culture that was fully accepted. They were allowed to believe that that was appropriate, and I answered the questions and laughed right along with them.”

    She rose to fame after starring in the teen horror film I Know What You Did Last Summer

    Image credits: IMDB

    She especially remembers when men she didn’t know approached her after she appeared on the cover of Maxim at 17.

    “People would openly walk up and be like, ‘I took your magazine with me on a trip last week,'” she said. “I didn’t really know what that meant. It’s kind of gross.”

    The mom of three previously spoke about her imposed sex symbol status—her “narrative” as an actress—in a 2018 interview withElle.

    “I think when you start [in Hollywood] younger, the narrative takes off without you. And you kind of go, ‘Oh, okay…so I’m that person? Great!’ Before I ever knew in my life what ‘sexy’ was, I was on the sexy list.”

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    Image credits: Jennifer Love Hewitt

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    Jennifer began acting when she was 10 on theDisney Channel showKids Incorporated. 

    In addition to acting, she has released four albums, the most recent of which came out in 2002, and served as a producer on some of her films and TV series.

    The Golden Globe nominee is set toreprise her role in a new I Know What You Did Last Summer film, reuniting with her former co-star Freddie Prinze Jr. The movie is scheduled for release on July 18, 2025.

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    Marina Urman

    Marina Urman

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    Marina is a journalist at Bored Panda. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, she holds a Bachelor of Social Science. In her spare time, you can find her baking, reading, or watching documentaries. Her main areas of interest are pop culture, literature, and education.

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    Marina Urman

    Marina Urman

    Author, BoredPanda staff

    Marina is a journalist at Bored Panda. Born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, she holds a Bachelor of Social Science. In her spare time, you can find her baking, reading, or watching documentaries. Her main areas of interest are pop culture, literature, and education.

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    Forrest Hobbs
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Please stop posting this sort of nonsense, BP. What happened to "Bored Panda’s mission is to spread good news and highlight top artists from around the world." ?

    Surly Scot
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    That site died 6months ago, BP is now basically just a bump between reddit and 4chan.

    Surly Scot
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Men of all ages, up to their 60's, were oogling me and sticking their hand up my skirt before I was even 5yrs old. Most men are pigs, and a lot more of them are interested in little girls than everyone wants to admit.

    Forrest Hobbs
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's only a *tiny* minority of men who "ogle" (etc) four year olds. If you were having that done to you by much more than one person, I suspect your parents had chosen to expose you to perverts.

    Load More Replies...
    Janelle Collard
    Community Member
    Premium
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Are you sure that's her? The last pic doesn't look anything like her.

    Bi.Felicia
    Community Member
    Premium
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I agree, that last picture doesn't resemble the Jennifer Love, that I remember, in the slightest.

    Load More Comments
    Forrest Hobbs
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Please stop posting this sort of nonsense, BP. What happened to "Bored Panda’s mission is to spread good news and highlight top artists from around the world." ?

    Surly Scot
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    That site died 6months ago, BP is now basically just a bump between reddit and 4chan.

    Surly Scot
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Men of all ages, up to their 60's, were oogling me and sticking their hand up my skirt before I was even 5yrs old. Most men are pigs, and a lot more of them are interested in little girls than everyone wants to admit.

    Forrest Hobbs
    Community Member
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    It's only a *tiny* minority of men who "ogle" (etc) four year olds. If you were having that done to you by much more than one person, I suspect your parents had chosen to expose you to perverts.

    Load More Replies...
    Janelle Collard
    Community Member
    Premium
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    Are you sure that's her? The last pic doesn't look anything like her.

    Bi.Felicia
    Community Member
    Premium
    3 weeks ago DotsCreated by potrace 1.15, written by Peter Selinger 2001-2017

    I agree, that last picture doesn't resemble the Jennifer Love, that I remember, in the slightest.

    Load More Comments
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