John Goodman is “still trying to get used to” his face after his weight loss.
The 74-year-old actor has lost about 90kg in the past few years, and he admits it’s strange to think of himself one way but see something else in the mirror.
“I’m still trying to get used to my face. It’s weird. I think of myself as one way, and then I look at myself, ‘Oh, wow,’ he told the Happy Sad Confused podcast.
Sign up to The Nightly’s newsletters.
Get the first look at the digital newspaper, curated daily stories and breaking headlines delivered to your inbox.
By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.
“It’s strange. It’s fun to get used to. There’s a lot of stuff I’m getting used to.”
Goodman said he was constantly getting comments from people about his “transformation”, but he tried to “ignore” the noise.
“Since I’m in this business, it is fair game, up to a point.”
John Goodman in 2003. Credit: Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images
Goodman, who weighed about 180kg when he made the decision to change his lifestyle, recalled turning down a nude scene in HBO comedy Righteous Gemstones, which ran from 2019 to 2025.
“I thought I was going to have to be naked in it and I said, ‘I don’t know. My body’s too messed up losing all this weight.’”
The Digger star noted he and the crew found a way to “get it done”.
In 2004 before the weight loss. Credit: Lawrence Lucier/FilmMagic
Goodman also suggested his weight “might have been self-sabotage” and likely limited opportunities in his career.
“Oh, I’m sure it did. And a lot of it, I think, might have been self-sabotage,” he said.
“Because when I got (to New York in the late 1970s), I was maybe 225 (pounds). I was in good shape.
In October, Goodman admitted his eating habits spiralled out of control even after he managed to give up drinking in 2007, which was followed by years of dramatic weight fluctuations.
John Goodman in Rosanne, where he first made his name. Credit: Supplied/Supplied
Of his weight loss, he told The New Yorker: “I’d lose 60 pounds in a summer, gain it all back – 70 pounds, 80 pounds – and that got tiring.”
“I took steps so I wouldn’t have to do that any more.”
