Size 8 Mariska Hargitay "Never Felt Compelled to Be a Skinny Actress"

Celebrity Body January 19, 2010 AT 11:24AM
Size 8 Mariska Hargitay "Never Felt Compelled to Be a Skinny Actress"

Here's the skinny: actress Mariska Hargitay doesn't feel pressure to be pin thin.

"I'm a size 8, and I feel proud of that because it's healthy," the Law & Order: SVU star, 45, tells the February issue of More magazine. "I've never felt compelled to be a skinny actress."

Check out pics of stars who have been scrutinized for their weight

The actress goes on, "I think I'm a very attractive person, but... that's not where I get my esteem."

Not everyone has agreed with her throughout her career.

"A guy at ABC told me to change my name and get a nose job," she says. "I said, 'You get a nose job.'"

See photos of stars who have faced plastic surgery nightmares

Hargitay has a lot to live up to, being the daughter of famed blonde bombshell actress Jayne Mansfield.

"I can never compete, so I don't try," she says. "Being a sex symbol is not my thing; it's not where I shine."

Hargitay also weighs in on the Jay Leno-Conan O'Brien late-night battle -- and how it affected Law & Order's ratings.

Stars choose sides: find out which celebs are Team Conan or Team Leno

"It ruined our numbers. The first four episodes, we were considerably down because nobody knew when the show was on," she says. "I hope we go back to where we belong [at 10 p.m.]. It was doing so well. Why mess with it?"

Tell Us What You Think

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  • March 13, 2012 - 10:46am Ethel Beth Gallagher

    I would think a lot more of Marishka if she said she was a size 10 or even 12. She has the height. She must have to do some serious dieting to be a size 8. Maybe now that's she's going to take a break from t.v. she will reach a more realistic weight for her size and chill out.

  • September 07, 2010 - 5:35pm Lisa-Marie LeBoeuf

    She is definitely a true beauty inside and out. Too bad the entertainment and modeling industries have such a warped view of beauty. It's time the rest of the ladies out there start representing real women of all sizes, shapes and colors and be proud of who they are not what others want them to be. Mariska rocks and shines!

  • September 07, 2010 - 2:22pm Maria 'Michelle' Aldridge

    Since when is a size 8 NOT considered skinny??? Really?? This is a serious problem!

  • February 23, 2010 - 4:59pm zach627

    Most beautiful woman on TV, hands down.

  • February 10, 2010 - 1:31pm Iz

    And that is why she is probably the most beautiful actress around right now. She is gorgeous inside and out...and with all of the charity work she is affiliated with, including her own Joyful Heart Foundation...SHE is the type of leading lady, girls and women need to look up too. Not the little twats out there these days, who are obsessively skinny, who exsessively drink and party, and who succum to Hollywood pressures and get rediculous plastic surgery that make them look like zoombies. ... Okay done ranting... Mariska.. I am 5'7... and a size 6...Thanks for being a healthy, beautiful, and compassionate role model. You rock.

  • February 03, 2010 - 11:03am kim

    Love her, she looks great! Good for her! What's wrong with a size 8? It would really suck if everyone looked the same...boring. We all have beautiful features, different, but that's what makes life beautiful!!

  • January 27, 2010 - 11:12am M

    Mariska looks great. Always looks thin and fit. And her face is beautiful. Nice to see someone who is ok with being normal-thin and not starving her body to some freakish-thin physique.

  • January 26, 2010 - 6:37pm Mauri

    Good for her!!

  • January 26, 2010 - 6:36pm Mauri

    Good for her!!

  • January 20, 2010 - 3:05pm jill85

    i love her! i really hope law and order svu doesnt end. her figure is wonderful. very feminine and healthy.

  • January 19, 2010 - 10:48pm Mar

    Mariska is a very beautiful and intelligent woman. I wish more women not only in the entertainment business but in general, would see that starving yourself will not only cause damage to your health but it can also cost your life.

  • January 19, 2010 - 6:14pm McHale

    She is fantastic and gorgeous. Much more beautiful than any of those skinny minis. At least she is a real person and doesn't feel the need to be a size 00 to be gorgeous. And even more, she has talent.

  • January 19, 2010 - 3:43pm Tiff

    Love Mariska. I thing a size 8 is very good for the public. thank the lord she isn't a size 3 or 4, or even 6. You have to do a grass diet to get to those sizes.

  • January 19, 2010 - 3:05pm giorgiò

    For me, svu is a show beyond compare, it's the best show ever. Criminal Minds is very good, but svu is on another 'planet', you know what I mean... and Mariska rocks...

  • January 19, 2010 - 2:39pm Anon

    How is a size 8 NOT a skinny actress? She is very thin, not exactly the average woman

  • January 19, 2010 - 2:15pm T.

    SVUs numbers are down because of bad story lines not because of the time slot it has. A hit show can work in any time slot. Criminal Minds story lines are so much better!!

  • January 19, 2010 - 1:49pm Tams

    she ROCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!

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