Michelle Obama shook the internet this week — and not just because of her wardrobe.
Following the release of “The Look” — her massive 200-photo collection highlighting years of iconic style in the White House — the former first lady posted new photos and fans began quickly sounding off about how dramatically slimmer she looked.
While her vibrant dresses and eye-catching shoes got the usual compliments, the louder conversation centered on whether Michelle’s weight loss had crossed into worrisome territory.
The moment the 61-year-old posted the photos, fans fixated on her drastically changed — and nearly unrecognizable — figure, sparking claims she may have taken things too far.
The Nov. 21 photos capture Obama posing for a photoshoot wearing a gray T-shirt with blue jeans paired with a brown belt and matching boots, and she appeared much thinner than usual.
In the caption, she noted that famed photographer Annie Leibovitz took the snaps for a new edition of Leibovitz’s book, “Women.”
“Who is that girl?” wrote one of many fans in her comments.
While most fans thought Obama looked great, many others were concerned after seeing the pictures that got over 1.4 million likes on her Instagram page.
“Her friend Oprah inspired her. She went from a line backer to a ballerina,” one Daily Mail read noted, prompting another to agree that she’d gone too far. “What on earth?” said one shocked person.
Oprah just dropped a bombshell!
She’s reportedly shed over 40 pounds—but the real shocker?
It wasn’t just diet or exercise. Was Ozempic her secret weapon all along?
Let’s break down how she’s redefining weight loss
pic.twitter.com/9sd9xCYreB
— Craig Brockie (@CraigBrockie) October 24, 2024
A third noted, “Thinner, yes – but no improvement otherwise – her face is hollowed-out and those tarantula lashes are comical. Somewhere 15 lbs ago, she was probably ‘just right’.”
“Something is off,” some fans said, wondering whether Obama was dealing with something behind the scenes or simply joining Hollywood’s new obsession with being ultra-thin.
“Way too thin Michelle, you look better with curves,” said one person, while another wrote, “Ridiculous! Nothing wrong with her curves before! She was hardly obese!!”
Some even claimed she looked like a younger version of her oldest daughter, Malia.
“Turning into a Malia clone……….. wrote one person. “Why not! Can really see Malia in her now,” added another.
One person added, “That’s waaaay too thin. She looks like she’ll snap.”
One commenter wrote that Obama lost weight due to the stress and “horrible treatment” of being the first lady to the first Black president as the first black couple to ever reside in the White House.
Back in May, when former first lady Michelle Obama helped kick off the nine-city book tour for “Matriarch: An Evening with Tina Knowles, Family and Friends,” at the MGM National Harbor Hotel and Casino near Washington, D.C., fans immediately zeroed in on her look.
The night wrapped with Michelle and Tina Knowles dancing to “Boots on the Ground,” but even then, viewers couldn’t help noticing how oversized Michelle’s suit appeared on her — and how loosely her clothes seemed to hang, sparking early whispers about her shrinking frame.
Tina Knowles launches book tour in Washington, D.C., with dancing Michelle Obama.
Featured guests Michelle Obama with virtual appearances from Oprah, Beyoncé.
Knowles' book, "Matriarch," details her life journey and the importance of family and is a New York Times Bestseller. pic.twitter.com/xJEYAly5j2
— Tosca Austen (@ToscaAusten) May 2, 2025
Rumors that the mother of two was taking the weight loss supplements known as Ozempic began over the summer after she was seen out and about with her husband, Barack Obama, for a date night. The couple was seen dining at the Lowell Hotel restaurant in New York City, and many on social media thought she looked too thin.
Obama told People in 2022 that she gained weight during menopause, and she does cardio and stretching to stay fit.
“Some of it is menopause, some of it is aging,” she told the outlet. “I find that I cannot push myself as hard as I used to. That doesn’t work out for me. That when I tear a muscle or pull something and then I’m out. The recovery time is not the same.
Obama told her brother and co-host, Craig Robinson, on their podcast series “IMO: The Look” that she felt pressure to do things right as the first lady, and it affected her fashion choices.
“A lot of my fashion choices, as we talked about in The Look, were about using the language as a way to send a message about beauty, about culture, about the American spirit, about inclusion,” she said. “So you know, I had a role, and now that I’m out of that role, fashion is about me, it’s selfishly completely about what I like and what I want to do.”
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