Sumo run at Battersea Park, London (20026756765)

A fatsuit, also known as a fat suit or a fat-suit, is a

bodysuit A bodysuit is a one-piece form-fitting or skin-tight garment that covers the torso and the crotch, and sometimes the legs, hands, and feet, and cannot be used as a swimsuit. The style of a basic bodysuit is similar to a one-piece swimsui ...

-like undergarment used to thicken the appearance of an actress or actor of light to medium build into an overweight or obese character, in conjunction with prosthetic makeup. Fatsuits worn by characters are either deliberately visible or mainly concealed. Most are intended as unseen body padding beneath a costume (e.g., Rosemary Shanahan in ''

Shallow Hal ''Shallow Hal'' is a 2001 American romantic comedy film starring Gwyneth Paltrow and Jack Black about a shallow man who falls in love with a 300-pound woman after being hypnotized into only seeing a person's inner beauty. Directed by the Farrell ...

'', and

Sherman Klump The Nutty Professor (known as Julius F. Kelp in the original film (1963) and as Prof. Sherman Klump in the 1996 remake, and by his alter ego Buddy Love in both films) is a fictional character portrayed by Jerry Lewis in '' The Nutty Professor'' ...

in '' The Nutty Professor''), others appear as realistic flesh and are viewed directly (e.g., Fat Bastard in ''

Austin Powers ''Austin Powers'' is a series of American spy action comedy films: '' Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery'' (1997), '' Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me'' (1999) and '' Austin Powers in Goldmember'' (2002). The films were produced ...

'', and Les Grossman's hands in ''

Tropic Thunder ''Tropic Thunder'' is a 2008 satirical action comedy film directed by Ben Stiller, who wrote the screenplay with Justin Theroux and Etan Cohen. The film stars Stiller, Jack Black, Robert Downey Jr., Jay Baruchel, and Brandon T. Jackson as a ...

''). A fatsuit is often used to provide comedic effect, as in music videos for " Fat" by

"Weird Al" Yankovic Alfred Matthew "Weird Al" Yankovic ( ; born October 23, 1959) is an American singer, musician, songwriter, record producer, actor and author. He is best known for creating comedy songs that make light of pop culture and often parody specific ...

, " Marblehead Johnson" by

The Bluetones The Bluetones are an English indie rock band, formed in Hounslow, Greater London, in 1993. The band's members are Mark Morriss on vocals, Adam Devlin on guitar, Mark's brother Scott Morriss on bass guitar, and Eds Chesters on drums. A fifth m ...

, "

Keine Lust "Keine Lust" (German for "no desire") is a song by German Neue Deutsche Härte band Rammstein. It was released as the fourth and final single from their fourth studio album, '' Reise, Reise'' (2004), on 28 February 2005 in Germany, Austria, and S ...

" by

Rammstein Rammstein (, "ramming stone") is a German Neue Deutsche Härte band formed in Berlin in 1994. The band's lineup—consisting of lead vocalist Till Lindemann, lead guitarist Richard Kruspe, rhythm guitarist Paul Landers, bassist Oliver Riedel, ...

and " Way 2 Sexy" by

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name ...

, and the episode " The Cooper Extraction" of ''

The Big Bang Theory ''The Big Bang Theory'' is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom served as executive producers on the series, along with Steven Molaro, all of whom also served as head writers. It premiered on CBS ...

.''

Experience of obesity

Fatsuits may also be used to impart the ''experience'' of being

obese Obesity is a medical condition, sometimes considered a disease, in which excess body fat has accumulated to such an extent that it may negatively affect health. People are classified as obese when their body mass index (BMI)—a person's we ...

to the wearer, not just the ''appearance'' of obesity to their audience. The suit in this case is weighted, as well as padded. Where the intention is to impart the experience of being seen as overweight in a community, its appearance must also be realistic and so a fatsuit rather than just a weight belt is needed. Several celebrities noted for their slimness have worn such garments and recorded their, and others', reactions as documentary of social attitudes to weight.

In media

References

External links

{{Commons category, Fatsuits Undergarments Costume design

Experience of obesity

In media

See also

References

External links