Lifestyle

BIG CHANGES

‘Remember the Titans’ Star Who Topped 536 Lb. Warns of Weight-Loss Mistake

The actor, who has lost more than half his body weight, shared words of wisdom for GLP-1 patients.

Roosa RahkonenReporter, The Looker

PublishedAug 3, 2026, 1:19 PM EDT

UpdatedAug 3, 2026, 3:58 PM EDT

Updated Aug 3, 2026, 3:58 PM EDTPublished Aug 3, 2026, 1:19 PM EDT

Comments

Remember the Titans actor Ethan Suplee slammed a mistake many GLP-1 users make, using his remarkable weight-loss journey as a reference point.

Suplee peaked at 536 pounds in 2001, then lost a mind-boggling 300 pounds through diet and lifestyle changes.

“As a kid, I wanted a magical diet drug so badly,” the 50-year-old actor, who started his first diet at just 5 years old, told Fox News Digital in an interview published on Sunday. “And now we have what is a magical diet drug.”

Suplee was referring to glucagon-like peptide-1 receptor agonists, also known as GLP-1s, that are sold under brand names like Ozempic, Wegovy, and Mounjaro.

The popular drugs, commonly used to assist weight loss, have been touted by A-list celebrities like Serena Williams, Amy Schumer, and Oprah Winfrey.

boy meets abs

‘Remember the Titans’ Star Reflects on His 536-Lb. Past

Roosa Rahkonen

Some of the drugs are suitable to manage type 2 diabetes, which comedian Rosie O’Donnell cited as her reason for taking Mounjaro.

Still, the American History X actor warned that GLP-1s are not a “one-stop shop.”

“I think you can hop on a GLP-1 and experience weight loss. You can see the scale go down week over week for a long time without having to do anything else,” he said.

But, Suplee added, GLP-1s alone won’t take a person to their “ideal” physique.

“If you’re just going into it, going like, ‘I just want to be healthier. Let me hop on this GLP-1 agonist and improve my health.’ Bravo to you,” he said. “I’m not criticizing those people.”

If a person had a goal physique in mind, reaching that would most likely require other lifestyle changes too. ”I think it also will require some resistance training to preserve lean tissue... maybe increase protein a bit...“ Suplee said.

”I don’t think it’s ever going to be one thing," Suplee said. “I think it is partially the amount of food you’re consuming, partially the types of food you’re consuming, partially how sedentary you are, and partially your emotional and potentially mental behavior and relationship with food.“

Suplee recalled undergoing many unsuccessful diets before making a complete lifestyle change in 2001, after finding out he weighed over 500 pounds at age 24.

STRENGTH TRAINING AND HONOR

Ripped Russell Crowe Dramatically Transforms His Body at 62

Roosa Rahkonen

It was that year that he entered treatment for substance abuse issues and reconnected with his now-wife, Brandy Lewis, 50, an actress and the sister of Oscar nominee Juliette Lewis.

Those factors pushed his transformation, and in the next four years, he lost 250 pounds with a keto diet and exercising with a trainer. He went on to lose another 50 pounds over a longer period.

Now he said that the hardest part of his journey was not losing weight.

“I found maintaining weight loss to be a hell of a lot harder and more complicated than losing weight,“ he said.

He noted that he continues to face similar challenges as he did 20 years ago: ”If I see an advertisement for McDonald’s, I want McDonald’s.”

WHO’S THAT GIRL?

‘Law & Order’ Star Is Unrecognizable After Major Weight Loss

Roosa Rahkonen

Working on his relationship with food has helped Suplee to enjoy treats without going overboard as he did in the past.

”It’s not eating it emotionally, not eating it to cure my anxiety, not eating it out of compulsion, and then not overeating it," he said. “Like, these are all the factors I have to deal with to maintain my weight.”

In June, Suplee celebrated his 50th birthday on Instagram with photos and text reflecting on his past.

“When I was much younger, I went to bed one night, morbidly obese, addicted to drugs, resigned to an imminent death. There was no future worth living for. I couldn’t see the miracle to celebrate,” he wrote.

“The only real and lasting change I’ve made, is in trying to find something about discomfort to enjoy. I have been successful in this pursuit.”

ON A ROLL

Jelly Roll Shares Shocking Video of 200-lb. Weight Loss

Roosa Rahkonen

Play Video

Roosa RahkonenReporter, The Looker

Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast.