Harry Potter actor Jessie Cave recently revealed that she felt invisible on the sets of the movies after she gained some weight. The film adaptations of J.K Rowling's Harry Potter series spanned across eight films and Cave joined the cast as Lavender Brown in the 6th film: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.
She revealed, “I gained a lot of weight after doing Harry Potter, just because I wasn’t starving myself. And I was growing up and that’s just what happens.”
After the 6th film, she returned for the two parts of Deathly Hallows, and felt like she was being treated like a 'different species'.
“I was treated like a different species. It was horrible. It was probably more me and my insecurity, knowing that I wasn’t fitting into the same size jeans, but it wasn’t a time where actresses were any bigger than a size eight. And in the previous film I had been, and now I was a size 12. So that was horrible. It was a really uncomfortable experience.”Jessie Cave, author-comedian
Cave added that even though being cast in the Harry Potter films did shine a light on her, she became 'invisible' after she gained the natural weight. "But you get a bit bigger, or you’re not as relevant, and it goes off, and you have to make your way in the dark. I definitely felt invisible when I gained a little bit of weight."
"And since then, it’s made me have weird issues with weight and work. And it’s so f***ed up, but it’s just how it is. Women have to deal with that all the time," she told UK's Independent.
Cave revealed that the issues with body image have been there for years. She admitted that Friends formed her idea of womanhood since she didn't know then that Jennifer Aniston's agent had called her 'too heavy'.
"It's the most toxic relationship, acting. Unless you're doing well, you're only being rejected. It's like going on a million first dates, and them going brilliantly, and then you never hear from them again. It's like getting ghosted a thousand times a year and it kind of sends you crazy."Jessie Cave, author-comedian
However, Cave shifted her focus from acting and has become a comedian and artist. She also wrote her debut novel Sunset, which reflects the person she is despite being a fictional story.
“It’s fiction, but it’s definitely got my voice. I think that’s why I’ve always written truthfully in my previous work, because you just have this amazing thrill afterwards, that you just told everyone your dirty secrets. Now they can make the decision whether to like you or not. It’s up to them. You’ve shown them everything," she said.
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