Alyson Stoner recalled the intense weight loss regimen they attempted to prepare for their Hunger Games audition while also dealing with disordered eating.
“Katniss was the main character and the ultimate strong female lead: goal-driven, sharp, athletic, and, thankfully, a heroine whose abilities were more important than physical beauty,” Stoner, who uses them/them in the pronunciation, recalled in an excerpt from her upcoming memoir, Partially Divided Despite Literally Everything, published by Vanity Fair on Tuesday, August 5.
The actor confessed, “But the role was on fire for me,” thanks to their struggles with eating disorders, which they struggled with as teenagers.
“Katniss was characteristically thin — not starved, but small enough to reflect growing up in an underserved area — and muscular from hunting and archery,” wrote Stoner, 31. “If I was going to dedicate myself to checking every box in the character description, I had to commit to strenuous training without completely giving in to my eating disorder.”
Alyson Stoner opens up about how her identity has affected her career, claiming that employers considered her “insecure” after coming out as queer. “It was really nerve-wracking, and the reason I ended up doing it was because my girlfriend at the time, we got to a point in our relationship where it felt like it […]
The former Disney star called the Hunger Games role a “long shot” but was hopeful that it wasn’t “too unrealistic for a director to pluck an unexpected person from the crowd and also make them a star.”
To improve his chances of getting the part, Stoner claimed to have been approved to attend a “world-renowned medical weight loss camp” at the age of 17. Although they were, of course, drastically underweight, Stoner enrolled in a two-week course that consisted of “seven hours of daily exercise in a calorie deficit.”
Reflecting on the experience, Stoner wrote, “I don’t recognize the irrational exceptions that doctors (and society) made to Hollywood because that was all I knew.”
The former child star revealed that when they were 10 years old, a doctor “discovered a heart murmur” during a physical they needed before they could fly and film Cheaper by the Dozen in the Area.
“When I shared that I had dizzy spells and blackouts, he didn’t mark anything in my file because it might stop the production company from letting you work,” Stoner claimed in his book. “I followed the doctor’s orders and ignored the murmurings just like he did, concluding that Hollywood must be above medicine, above the law, and even above common sense.”
Stoner explained that the same oversight seemed to allow them to participate in the weight loss camp despite being underweight.
“Doctors and trainers should never have allowed a minor to do seven hours of 14-mile hikes, heavy lifting, and high-intensity cardio,” Stoner wrote about the Hunger Games audition prep they ultimately endured. “But all I had to say was that I was training for acting. They assessed me as mentally stable and opened the door. Then, days later, I took myself (and all my mental stability) to a boulder in the nearby woods to build tactical prowess as Katniss.”
While the Stoners waited to find out if they had gotten the gig — the role of Katniss eventually went to Jennifer Lawrence — they were still committed to the unhealthy lifestyle they had acquired during camp.
“After a week [of waiting to find out], I pushed past the edge of deprivation into a full-body emergency of food anxiety,” Stoner wrote, noting that they were in “starvation mode” as the casting process continued.
Stoner eventually “willed” himself to “slowly approach the pantry” and finally ate “a modest amount of peanut butter on saltine crackers,” totaling “350 calories.”
“I was starving,” the actor recalled. “An hour later, I popped a packet of sugar-free oatmeal and added protein powder. That should have been enough. My stomach was growling more.”
After being deprived of nutrients during the audition process, Stoner revealed that they had a complete food binge that included “pints of ice cream from the back of the freezer” and “pulling chips, popcorn, chocolate bars, and whatever was within reach until my jaw was too sore to chew. With benefits taken away, I ended up having the biggest hangover of my life.”
Despite “still craving sugar” 12 hours after their binge, Stoner recalled having to “face the damage they had done to themselves the night before.”
Rich Fury/Getty Images Alyson Stoner wasn’t thrilled to learn that her first kiss would be with Dylan Sprouse — and on camera — during an episode of The Suite Life of Zack & Cody. “I felt new and awkward,” Stoner, 30, said of the experience via a TikTok video this week. “I felt like it was part of […]
“When I stepped on the scale, I rubbed my eyes in disbelief. What the hell? I gained back every pound I lost in two months? In a matter of hours?! It was my worst nightmare,” Stoner wrote. “My body had been holding on to every ounce of food and liquid, not knowing when it would be fed again. All my progress had been erased.”
It wasn’t long after they weighed in that Stoner said they found out they didn’t get a part in The Hunger Games franchise. “I was sitting on my bed with my eyes wide open and my mind blank. I didn’t know what to do with myself,” Stoner recalled.
Stoner goes into more detail about her eating disorder struggles, rising in Hollywood, and more in Partially Divided Despite Literally Everything , which hits bookstores on Tuesday, August 12.
If you or someone you know is struggling with an eating disorder, visit the National Eating Disorders Alliance website or call their hotline at +1 (866) 662-1235. Text “Alliance” to 741741 for free, 24/7 support.
