Chloë Grace Moretz Says 'Family Guy' Meme Is 'Horrific': 'My Body Is Being Used as a Joke'

Chloë Grace Moretz says the photoshopped meme of her body made her "severely anxious" whenever she was photographed

Chloë Grace Moretz attends the Louis Vuitton's 2023 Cruise Show on May 12, 2022 in San Diego, California.
Chloë Grace Moretz. Photo: Emma McIntyre/Getty

Chloë Grace Moretz says being at the center of jokes on social media contributed to body dysmorphia.

In a recent interview published by Hunger Magazine, the 25-year-old actress reflected on the "horrific memes" created about her that caused her to be "super self-conscious" about her body. She recalled the moment a paparazzi photo of her went viral and was quickly compared to a Family Guy meme.

"I've actually never really talked about this, but there was one meme that really affected me, of me walking into a hotel with a pizza box in my hand," Moretz explained. "And this photo got manipulated into a character from Family Guy with the long legs and the short torso, and it was one of the most widespread memes at the time."

Moretz admitted that it was difficult to get over the situation because those around her were downplaying how it made her feel.

"Everyone was making fun of my body, and I brought it up with someone, and they were like, 'Oh, shut the f— up, it's funny.' And I just remember sitting there and thinking, my body is being used as a joke, and it's something that I can't change about who I am, and it is being posted all over Instagram," she told the outlet.

"It was something so benign as walking into a hotel with leftovers," she added. "And to this day, when I see that meme, it's something very hard for me to overcome."

The Kick-Ass star said the viral moment made her sad, and she no longer enjoyed being photographed, noting that she had to work through it with a lot of therapy.

"It took a layer of something that I used to enjoy, which was getting dressed up and going to a carpet and taking a photo, and made me super self-conscious," Moretz said. "And I think that body dysmorphia — which we all deal with in this world — is extrapolated by the issues of social media. It's a headf---."

"I basically became a recluse," she told Hunger. "It was great because I got away from the photographers and I was able to be myself, and to have so many experiences that people didn't photograph, but at the same time it made me severely anxious when I was photographed. My heart rate would rise and I would hyperventilate."

Moretz admitted in the interview that she was appreciative of the COVID-19 pandemic for allowing the ability to avoid unwanted attention.

"I just put a hat on, put a mask on and then put my hood up and would be able to get away with a lot more, like go to a concert or bite my lip or have undocumented pimples," she said, adding that it was a "time of introspection."

"To say that these past two years have been transformative is an understatement, to say the least," Moretz said. "I'm a very different girl than I was. I feel like a woman now."

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