Katherine Heigl Once Slammed a Movie She Starred In For Sexism
Katherine Heigl got her first big break when she landed the role of Dr. Izzie Stevens on Grey’s Anatomy. Heigl maintained her status on Grey’s Anatomy as a series regular for five years, between 2005 and 2010. In 2010, after landing some big movie roles, Heigl decided to leave the show to seriously pursue a film career. Between 2010 and 2014, Heigl became one of Hollywood’s It Girls. She starred in numerous hit rom-com movies during these years. However, when looking back on her career, Heigl has some regrets. In 2007, Heigl starred in the hit film Knocked Up. Read on to learn more about Heigl’s view on the film and how that experience has shaped her acting career ever since.
A ‘Knocked Up’ recap
The hit romantic comedy, Knocked Up, hit theaters in 2007. The film starred Katherine Heigl and Seth Rogen, directed by Judd Apatow. Heigl plays the character, Alison Scott. In the film, Alison is a career-minded woman who meets a laid-back and generally unmotivated man named Ben, played by Seth Rogan. The two have little in common and soon go their separate ways after having a one-night stand. The only problem is that eight weeks after their initial encounter, Alison begins to experience morning sickness.
After discovering she’s pregnant, Alison reaches out to Ben. The pair is forced to reconnect and discuss what they want to do about the situation at hand. They ultimately decide to give their relationship another chance in order to raise their baby together. Of course, with such opposite personalities and life aspirations, things don’t go off without a hitch. While there are tons of ups and downs throughout the film, Alison and Ben eventually welcome their baby girl into the world and happily settle down together in an apartment in Los Angeles.
Learning from mistakes
Knocked Up got rave reviews for its comedy. However, many of the jokes in the film were based around sexism or sexist ideology. The film was basically centered around the kind of raunchy humor that does not paint women in a positive light. Ultimately, the film did well at the box office and certainly showcased Heigl’s talents as an actor. Despite the fame and success the film brought Heigl, she still felt regret about partaking in such a narrative after the cameras stopped rolling.
In 2008, Heigl had an interview with Vanity Fair expressing her concerns with the sexist nature of the film. Heigl told Vanity Fair that she believed the overall script of the film “paints the women as shrews, as humorless and uptight, and it paints the men as lovable, goofy, fun-loving guys.” While Heigl now regrets her role in Knocked Up, working on the film was still a great learning experience for her. Since working on Knocked Up in 2007, Heigl has learned what her boundaries are and has gained the confidence to turn down work on projects that don’t align with her values.
An epic career
Since her days in Knocked Up, Heigl has gone on to have an epic career. Shortly after Knocked Up, Heigl earned starring roles in the 2008 hit film 27 Dresses and 2009 hit film The Ugly Truth. After success in these three mainstream films, Heigl’s film career really started to heat up. Between 2010 and 2014, Heigl starred in a number of hit films and became one of Hollywood’s big players. Some of the most popular films she starred in during this time were Killers, Life as We Know It, New Year’s Eve, One for the Money, and The Big Wedding, according to IMDb.
While Heigl may regret some of her early career decisions, they certainly haven’t hindered her career too much. Ultimately, Heigl learned from her past mistakes and used her new perspective to make career decisions that she feels more aligned with. Heigl’s latest film is Fear of Rain, a psychological thriller where she stars as Michelle Burroughs. The film is set to hit theaters sometime in 2021.
