Gus Kenworthy Opens Up About Dealing with ‘Absolute Body Dysmorphia’

Gus Kenworthy Opens Up About Dealing with 'Absolute Body Dysmorphia'

Gus Kenworthy is opening up about his struggles with body image.

In a new interview, the 31-year-old Olympic skier and actor opened up about dealing with “body dysmorphia,” being a perceived as a sex symbol, and playing straight roles as a gay man.

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“I don’t think I have the perfect body,” Gus shared with Attitude. “I have absolute body dysmorphia, the same way that every gay person does.”

“There are moments where I’m, like, super happy with how my body looks and I’m being stricter about what I’m eating and better with my training,” Gus continued. “And then there are moments where I’m not feeling good about it. And the way that Instagram works is that’s probably not the time I’m going to post a photo. So it creates this kind of distorted version of reality.”

Despite not always feeling his best, Gus doesn’t mind being perceived as a sex symbol.

“In terms of being viewed as sexual, I don’t care,” Gus admitted. “I’m flattered and fine with it. I’m a very, very sexual person and I’m very open about it.”

Gus first made a name for himself competing in the Olympics as a freestyle skier and won a silver medal 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi.

Since then, Gus has shifted into acting, and appeared in American Horror Story: 1984 back in 2019 and 2023′s 80 for Brady.

Also in his interview, Gus talked about taking on straight roles as a gay man.

“The beauty of acting is that you’re taking on another character,” Gus explained. “I think that when it comes to queer roles, I don’t think it should be forbidden for straight actors to play those parts. But I do think that gay actors should be considered for them and sometimes aren’t.”

“I’m not a super serious classically trained dramatic actor that’s coming for Oscars,” Gus said of the kinds of roles he wants to play. “I want to play a semblance of myself – the love interest in a gay rom-com is my dream role.”

In an interview from a few years ago, Gus talked about overcoming the trauma of growing up gay in a straight world.