ICYMI, Chris Sullivan, a.k.a. Toby wears a fat suit on This is Us.
Chris revealed this info pretty much for the first time on The View back in February, where he sarcastically shouted,
“Something on television is a lie!?”
And the internet wasn’t happy, as the internet usually isn’t.
the fact that #toby wears a fat suit is sooooooo disappointing.. #thisisus @NBCThisisUs
— ⚓️ SweetShell637 ⚓️ (@SweetShell637) February 10, 2017
Does the guy who plays Toby on This Is Us really wear a fat suit? Like they couldn't find an actual overweight white male actor?
— Kathleen (@TrmpledUndrFoot) February 7, 2017
honestly pissed that the actor who plays toby on this is us wears a fat suit – how about some actual representation for plus sized men?
— hannah (@hgdchampion) February 7, 2017
He later appeared on The Today Show, where Chris said he doesn’t read internet criticism of his character’s appearance.
He told Megyn Kelly (ew, btw),
“There’s a lot of things to be outraged about these days, and I think that getting outraged about an actor on a television show who may be wearing a costume that makes him look larger than he is might be low on the list.”
Ok, I’ll take that…but people still have a right to get mad over things you might think are small.
He added,
“Now, if I am not portraying Toby with a level of integrity or with a level of honesty that you agree with, I would be happy to talk about that. Regardless of the costumes that I wear, especially with Toby, I try to do it with as much heart and honesty as I can.”
But we shouldn’t disregard the concern that a plus-sized actor could and should have been cast. It’s kind of hard to argue at this point though at this point because Chris carries this role so well and his portrayal is completely endearing and lovely.
