Katharine McPhee Was Called "Fat" By Her Husband David Foster, And People Have A Lot To Say About It
"Those comments are so hurtful. Hearing from anyone, let alone your partner. No one should comment on anyone's body, 'joking' or not.
April 19, 2025 · 3 min · 466 words · Nathan Phelps
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Warning: Discussion of body-shaming and eating disorders.#
David Fosteris facing backlash after a video resurfaced where he calls his wife Katharine McPhee “fat.”#
In thevideo, originally from January, the 16-time Grammy-winning record producer, composer, and music executive sat at a piano asAmerican Idolalum Katharine told fans, “You may not know we met 17, almost 18 years ago when I was a little chubby and cheerful contestant onAmerican Idol.”#
Katharine was the runner-up on the fifth season ofAmerican Idolin 2006. The pair met when David mentored the reality TV singing competition contestants.#
“Oh, yeah. You were fat,” David responded while sitting at the piano.#
Katharine responded in an attempt to poke fun at her husband’s comment, saying, “I was a little chubby, okay? I was just young.”#
“This made my heart hurt. This beautiful girl was NEVER fat. You don’t call your wife fat. As a joke or serious,” one user wrote.#
“Omg I cannot believe he said that????” another user asked.#
One user said, “It says a lot that she brought it up and it says even more he went along with it and commented on her weight.”#
“That was awful. If he can say that on stage what does he say at home?” another user asked.#
And this user wrote, “This shouldn’t ever be encouraged or tolerated. David is a powerful public figure. He’s just allowing the continuance for men to pick apart other women and other women to pick on themselves.”#
“It just suddenly came up in a way that hadn’t been present in a long time,” Katharine said, referring to her past struggles. She added that she “felt really stable in my life in the last four or five years, and my weight has been more consistent.”#
In 2006, Katharine talked toPeopleabout bulimia. “When I made it ontoAmerican Idol,I knew that food — my eating disorder — was the one thing really holding me back,” she says. “I was bingeing my whole life away for days at a time. So when I got on the show, I said, ‘You know what? I can do well in this competition. Let me give myself a chance and just get ahold of this thing.'”#
Since Katharine’s been very open about her struggles with body image and eating disorders, it makes a lot of sense why fans would be distraught with the content of the resurfaced video.#
Seriously, let’s just be mindful of how we talk about ourselves and others (even if you’re a husband joking around). Jeez!#
TheNational Eating Disorders Associationhelpline is 1-800-931-2237; for 24/7 crisis support, text “NEDA” to 741741.#
The National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline is 1-800-950-6264 (NAMI) and provides information and referral services;GoodTherapy.orgis an association of mental health professionals from more than 25 countries who support efforts to reduce harm in therapy.#