TW: Anorexia, Eating Disorder
“The quirky things that make you different are what make you beautiful.” -Unfiltered: No Shame, No Regrets, Just Me.
To the quirky and beautiful Lily Collins, this ode is dedicated.
Authenticity in today’s world is rare.
One of the main reasons I proudly adore Lily is because of the level of authenticity she shares with the world. Lily presents her life through a transparent lens and does not shy away from disclosing the highs and lows of her life and career.
Lily Jane Collins is a 31 year old actress, writer, model and producer. She is an English born, American bread girl, seeing she resided in Surrey, England until she moved to Los Angeles at the age of 7 after her parents divorced in 1996.
Lily has slowly but surely built her career since, but not without some bumps along the road revealing that she is human just like the rest of us. She is acknowledged for her roles in popular movies such as The Blinde Side (2009), Okja (2017), To The Bone (2017) and most recently, Emily In Paris (2020).
Lily premiered her first book, “Unfiltered: No Shame, No Regrets, Just me.” on March 7, 2017. Throughout this publication, Lily writes her raw and genuine truth. Lily recalls her trials and tribulations of growing up by documenting her experience with heartbreak (“I am whole just as I am. I am defined not by my life experiences but by how I let them affect me and how I handle myself in each situation.”), traveling the world, and most notably- her struggles with eating disorders. A “deep fear” Lily has is her eating disorder she suffered through in her younger years. She paints a crystal clear image of what she dealt with on her journey with anorexia and bulimia. It was probably the most relatable part of her book for a lot of readers. Lily was even sent a thank-you note from former First Lady, Michelle Obama in honor of her memoir. “The gift was such a nice gesture, and I look forward to sharing it with my daughters,” Obama wrote. “The outpouring of support I have received from women across the country continues to amaze me, and I am filled with a great sense of hope for our shared future.”Lily further discussed how her eating disorder framed her life in an interview with Shape.com. “”I used to see healthy as this image of what I thought perfect looked like—the perfect muscle definition, etc. But healthy now is how strong I feel. It’s a beautiful change, because if you’re strong and confident, it doesn’t matter what muscles are showing. Today I love my shape. My body is the shape it is because it holds my heart.”
Written and directed by Marti Noxon, the full-length motion picture To The Bone recounts the story of a young girl named Ellen (who is superbly played by Lily Collins) who battles anorexia. Vanity Fair states that when Lily received the script for To The Bone, she had just concluded her chapter in her novel “Unfiltered” about her own inner conflict with anorexia. Lily saw this as an opportunity to go even further into sharing her story with the world. In an interview with Harper’s Bazaar she says“It felt a bit like a graduation because how often do you get to step back into shoes that you once wore from a different perspective? Knowing what I know now going back into it and what had originally kick-started my disorder… Well those reasons don’t apply to me anymore. It was interesting to step into the mind of the character with a different perspective, not be that young 16-year-old girl, to be in your 20s and to know who you are and to have goals that exceed food. I felt proud to have accomplished the movie and proud that Netflix liked the movie so much they wanted to distribute it. I made the movie not caring about how many people saw it. But for someone like Netflix who has so many people watching, it’s amazing.”
Lily has been an idol for me ever since I was first introduced to her through one of my favorite movies, The Mortal Instruments (2013), where she effortlessly played the main character, Clary Fray. I fell in love with her humble spirit which complimented the brave character she portrayed on stage. I have been a devout follower ever since. Lily embraces her ability to use her platform to speak her truths about political and social issues close to her heart. The power combination of her humble nature and elegance is a sure fire recipe for her future success. And to think she is only just beginning…