ST. LOUIS– Renee Zellweger was spotted in New Orleans wearing a prosthetic ‘fat suit’ as she portrays Pam Hupp during production for a true-crime series based on the Betsey Faria murder.
The Daily Mail reports Zellweger, 52, was photographed wearing the bodysuit-like garment to help transform her slim physique. She also reportedly was wearing a prosthetic nose.
The paper says Zellweger gained almost 30 pounds to play Bridget Jones for the 2001 movie and has said in interviews that continued yo-yo dieting for the film series lead to panic attacks.
The Daily Mail also says the use of a ‘fat suit’ in Hollywood has become a controversial option for actors. Gwyneth Paltrow and Sara Paulson say they both regret wearing one for roles.
“The Thing About Pam” is a six-episode show based on the Missouri case that FOX 2 investigative reporter Chris Hayes broke a decade ago. Dateline has turned it into a series of specials and a podcast.
Zellweger is playing Hupp who is serving a life sentence for killing Louis Gumpenberger. Earlier this year, she plead not guilty to the 2011 murder of her friend Betsey Faria.
Betsy Faria was stabbed to death at her home in December 2011. Her husband, Russ, was convicted in 2013 for the murder after a Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office investigation used Hupp as a star witness.
Pam Hupp says her intended victims were looking for their “15 minutes of fame” in jail calls Russ Faria was found not guilty in a second trial in 2015. The second trial revealed all of the evidence in the murder of Russ’ wife, including evidence—and motive—pointing to Hupp as the possible killer.
In 2016, Hupp shot and killed Louis Gumpenberger in a plot to deflect the heat she was feeling from law enforcement outside of Lincoln County. Federal investigators were looking into Hupp.
In June 2019, Hupp submitted an Alford plea to avoid the death penalty in the Gumbpenberger case. She admitted that the state of Missouri had enough evidence to convict her of Gumpenberger’s murder. She shot him to death in her home.
Hupp is currently serving a life sentence in a Missouri state prison. She just pled not guilty to killing Betsy Faria.