Love, Actually actor says she was told to lose weight aged 12

One of the stars of Love Actually has revealed that she was once told to lose weight as a child.

The hit Christmas rom-com came out almost 20 years ago, and remains a classic of the genre.

Now, over the years, people have done a bit of a revision of the film and questioned some of the storylines.

Like, why did we just accept that it was totally fine for Andrew Lincoln's character to pretty much stalk his best mate's wife?

Universal

Or what about Alan Rickman trying to play matchmaker with his employees while also simultaneously almost having an affair with one?

Another of the stand out plots, though, involved Liam Neeson as a newly-widowed dad who tries to help his son out with his love life.

Cause that's just what every young boy needs, right?

The situation is that young Sam (Thomas Brodie-Sangster) has fallen 'in love' with his classmate Joanna, played by Olivia Olson.

Universal

If you've seen the film, you know the story; big Mariah Carey number followed swiftly by that airport scene - the less said about that the better.

Since the film hit cinemas, fans haven't really seen much of Olson on the big screen.

And she recently opened up about why that has been the case.

Speaking to the Sun, she said that she was close to a 'mental breakdown' due to the harsh nature of auditions.

She said: "The auditioning process is constant rejection and at that age, having casting directors saying literally to your face, when you are 12 years old, ‘Oh, we would like you if only you dropped 10lbs’. It’s like, what?

“Any person who says that to a kid needs to re-evaluate, but it’s just how the world worked at the time."

oliviaroseolson/Instagram

She recalled how she would only ever get called up for Hispanic roles, and that casting directors would always ask whether she could speak Spanish.

This would leave Olson, who is not Hispanic, having to explain that she couldn't.

Olson, now 30, focuses on voice over work because that doesn't centre on someone's looks.

“People would ask, ‘What are you?’ It makes you feel like a zoo animal,” she revealed.

Topics: TV And Film, Entertainment, Christmas

Dominic Smithers

Dominic Smithers is the News/Agenda Desk Lead, covering the latest trends and breaking stories. After graduating from the University of Leeds with a degree in French and History, he went on to write for the Manchester Evening News, the Accrington Observer and the Macclesfield Express. So as you can imagine, he’s spent many a night wondering just how useful that second language has been. But c'est la vie.

@SmithersDom