Naomi Ackie Says Losing Weight for Whitney Houston Biopic 'Put Me in a Bad Mental Space’

• Naomi Ackie recalls losing 30 pounds. for playing the late Whitney Houston in a 2022 biopic Whitney Houston: I want to dance with someonesaying The Hollywood Reporter that it “puts me in a bad mental space”
• The actress says she counted calories and exercised, because being smaller “opens doors”
• Ackie, who appears in the upcoming thriller Blink twiceshe said she was “sad for myself because I should have enjoyed myself” after the film

Naomi Ackie looks back on the dramatic way she transformed her body for the 2022 biopic. Whitney Houston: I want to dance with someone — and the lasting impact it had on her self-image.

Ackie, 31, said The Hollywood Reporter that she lost 30 kg. to play the late R&B/pop icon, who died in 2012 at the age of 48 from an accidental drowning in a hotel bathtub.

“I worked hard, I wasn’t smart, and it put me in a bad mental state,” Ackie said, sharing that after losing the weight, “I was the size I always wanted to be.”

“I was tiny and I wanted to stay that way. I thought being a US size 4 would open doors for me. And eating it, but it opens doors,” said the British actress.

Naomi Ackie as Whitney Houston in the 2022 biopic ‘Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance with Somebody’. TRISTAR; Rtmatthews/Mediapunch/Shutterstock

She told the paper that she continued to hit the gym in an attempt to maintain her now smaller frame – and was dedicated to counting calories – but shared that she changed her mind after talking to her boyfriend.

“I asked him if he had any physical descents and he said no,” she explained. “I say, ‘You didn’t do caloric math like I did?’ ”

Watch how Naomi Ackie mastered Whitney Houston’s voice and moves for ‘I Wanna Dance With Somebody’

Ackie admitted: “This is probably too much to share, but maybe it will be helpful to someone. I got to the point s Whitney where you could name any food and I could tell you the calorie intake.”

“I look back now and I’m so sad for myself because I should have enjoyed it,” she said. “I work hard to pay the rent and the bills, and if you’re lucky, you have a little bit left over to travel — and eat whatever you want. Well, I should eat, bitch!”

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The experience of filming a thriller Blink twice, however, it was much different in terms of impacting her body image, she told the outlet.

Before filming, the cast members and director Zoë Kravitz discussed their various concerns about their scenes, which mostly required them to wear bikinis while visiting the private island of a billionaire (Channing Tatum), who may have sinister motives.

Naomi Ackie promotes ‘Blink Twice’ in Los Angeles.

Rodin Eckenroth/Getty

“I was like, ‘OK, ladies, we’re going to be running in bikinis, and I’ve got big old ladies, so how are these girls going to be safe and protected?’ ” Ackie recalled. “And Zoë was like, ‘I’ve got you, I’m never going to put you in a position where you’re not comfortable, and I want you to feel hot and confident.’ ”

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Kravitz told the outlet, “If I can’t provide a safe space while making this movie, then what am I even preaching about? I wanted this production to be a place to work out exactly those feelings and emotions with the help of these women.”

“And as an actor, I understand the vulnerability of putting myself in front of the camera like that,” she continued, “so I can tell them what I want to hear. Things like, ‘That angle doesn’t look so good, turn like this instead.’ ”

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Source: HIS Education