It’s hard to believe that just six years ago, the body positivity movement was flourishing.
The fashion world was changing rapidly—catwalks featured models with all kinds of bodies, showcasing tummies, thighs, and dimples in places that real women have them.
Clothing brands like Reformation and Madewell made bold moves by expanding their size ranges, and advertisements displayed models with curves, rolls, and folds, celebrating diversity.
Even everyday street style embraced this new openness, with young women confidently rocking crop tops and tiny cycling shorts, flaunting their bodies in a way that defied traditional beauty standards.
The message was clear: everyone was beautiful, and you should wear what feels right for you.
The Decline of Size Representation in Fashion
Fast forward to today, and the landscape looks drastically different.
The major fashion shows are once again largely dominated by thinner models.
A recent Vogue Business report revealed a shocking statistic—only 0.3% of the models on the Autumn/Winter 2025 runways across New York, London, Milan, and Paris were plus-size (a UK size 18 or over).
Milan had no plus-size models at all, and London saw a significant drop in representation. In fact, a staggering 97.7% of the models were a size 4-8, while just 2% were considered mid-size (UK sizes 10-16).
Some fashion insiders even reported that models were turning up to castings looking alarmingly thin—shivering, with blue lips—as the industry continues to push a narrow definition of beauty.
At the same time, many fashion brands have quietly scaled back or eliminated their plus-size collections.
River Island, for example, removed their plus-size line from high street stores entirely.
The TikTok “Chubby Filter” and a Disturbing Backlash
Perhaps the most disturbing sign of the shift away from body positivity came earlier this year with the release of TikTok’s “Chubby Filter.”
This AI-generated tool transformed selfies into “fatter” versions of the user, adding bulk to thighs, waists, hips, and faces.
While some might have expected the filter to promote body positivity, the trend exploded in a different direction—many users posted their altered selfies with disgust, mocking the added weight.
TikTok eventually removed the filter after backlash, but not before it fueled an unsettling rise in body shaming and fatphobia online.
The existence of such a filter seems almost unimaginable just a few years ago when body positivity was still celebrated as a growing movement.
The Weight Loss Injection Phenomenon and the Resurgence of “Thin”
One factor behind this dramatic shift may be the rising popularity of weight-loss injections like Ozempic and Mounjaro.
In the past two years, these drugs have become a cultural phenomenon, sparking a frenzy to shed pounds.
As the demand for “thin” bodies resurges, it feels like we’ve reverted to the same cultural mindset that dominated the 1990s—a period defined by the “heroin chic” look.
Thinness is once again in vogue, while larger bodies are increasingly seen as undesirable, and the body positivity movement appears to be fading into the background.
Was Body Positivity Just a Passing Trend?
The question now remains: was body positivity merely a trend—a momentary cultural blip that aligned with the rise of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives?
Or was it, as some suggest, a social media-driven push that forced the world to embrace body diversity in a way that was never truly authentic?
As someone who grew up in the 1990s, reading magazines that worshipped skeletal figures like Kate Moss, I know how damaging the obsession with thinness can be.
I, too, struggled with an eating disorder and body dysmorphia during my teenage years, deeply affected by the media’s portrayal of beauty.
When I became an editor at Cosmopolitan, I wanted to help shift the narrative around beauty standards.
At the time, Cosmo was one of the few magazines that embraced body inclusivity, featuring cover stars like Kelly Osbourne and Khloé Kardashian, who didn’t fit the conventional mold of a fashion model.
Yet, even then, it was clear that the fashion world wasn’t entirely ready to embrace larger models.
The Struggles of Including Larger Models in Fashion
In my time at Cosmo, I requested larger models for photo shoots, only to receive girls with 33-inch hips—a size 6 by most standards.
Even more frustrating, few fashionable brands made clothing above a size 14.
Luxury brands, in particular, stuck to their sample sizes, which were often much smaller than a size 14.
Despite the push for body inclusivity, it was difficult to offer a true representation of the diversity we were advocating for.
In 2018, I read Tess Holliday’s autobiography, which deeply moved me.
Tess, a 5’2″ model who weighed 17.5 stone, had defied the odds and carved out a place for herself in the fashion industry.
She had become a symbol of the body positivity movement, leading a social media campaign called “Eff Your Beauty Standards.” It was clear to me that Tess was the perfect model for our magazine cover.
Yet, at the time, a plus-size model like Tess had never appeared on the cover of a glossy fashion magazine.
There had been token appearances from models like Sophie Dahl or Candice Huffine, but Tess was different—she was unapologetically herself.
The Backlash to Body Positivity
When the issue hit newsstands, the backlash was immediate and intense.
Critics, including many of our own readers, decried the cover, calling for my resignation.
Piers Morgan even confronted me on live TV, claiming we were encouraging obesity.
I even received a death threat for featuring what one person described as a “whale” on the cover.
It was clear that many people, particularly women, were uncomfortable with a body that deviated so far from the traditional beauty ideal.
Yet, for every complaint, there were hundreds of women who expressed gratitude. They weren’t looking to look like Tess—they just wanted acknowledgment that people of all shapes and sizes deserved to be seen and celebrated.
A Brief Moment of Change and the Return of Size Exclusivity
For a while, it seemed like the body positivity movement had gained real traction.
Major brands expanded their size ranges, and we saw more plus-size representation on the runway and in advertising.
Yet, as quickly as it came, that shift seems to be fading.
The runways now feature fewer plus-size models, and brands that once championed size inclusivity have begun to pull back.
Even Tess, the very woman who helped to usher in this wave of body acceptance, has noticed the industry’s retreat.
“Bookings for plus-size talent are significantly slower than they were just a few years ago,” she says, adding that many of the brands that once embraced body diversity are now erasing it altogether.
What Happens Next for Body Positivity?
So, what does the future hold for the body positivity movement? With weight-loss drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro on the rise and the fashion industry shrinking its size inclusivity efforts, it seems like the movement may be on its way out.
Many women, including celebrities like Mindy Kaling, Kelly Clarkson, and Amy Schumer, have slimmed down in the face of growing cultural pressure.
Are we seeing the return of an era that once prized thinness above all else?
As we look around, it’s clear that many are still turning to weight-loss injections in a desperate bid for a smaller body.
But have we, as a society, truly embraced the idea that every body is beautiful, or was body positivity just another passing fad—one that was never fully accepted in the first place?
I hope, for the sake of future generations, that we haven’t lost sight of the progress we made.