In light of a petition calling for the cancellation of the upcoming Netflix series Insatiable, the company’s Original Series vice president Cindy Holland has addressed concerns of "fat-shaming" weaved within the plot. While at the 2018 Television Critics Association Summer Press Tour, Holland defended the decision by Lauren Gussis, the show’s creator, to explore these issues based off her own personal experiences.
"Lauren Gussis, who is the creator, felt very strongly about exploring these issues based on her own experiences, but in a satirical, over-the-top way," Holland said, perVulture. "Ultimately, the message of the show is that what is most important is that you feel comfortable in your own self. Fat-shaming itself, that criticism, is embedded in the DNA of the show."
Following the release of the trailer, a Change.org petition, which has already received over 209,000 signatures, called out the series for their portrayal of a high school student referred to as "Fatty Patty." After getting consistently bullied by her peers for being overweight, Patty is suddenly perceived as hot when she loses weight after getting her jaw wired shut. She uses this newfound acceptance to get back at the people who once made her life hell.
"For so long, the narrative has told women and young impressionable girls that in order to be popular, have friends, to be desirable for the male gaze, and to some extent be a worthy human...that we must be thin," the petition reads. "The toxicity of this series, is bigger than just this one particular series. This is not an isolated case, but part of a much larger problem that I can promise you every single woman has faced in her life, sitting somewhere on the scale of valuing their worth on their bodies, to be desirable objects for the male gaze. That is exactly what this series does."
Insatiable is slated to premiere on August 10.
