WASHINGTON — It's hard to believe that Amy Schumer landed in fourth place on a comedy competition show just a few years ago. But that was the reality for the Towson University graduate back in 2007 when she took a leap of faith and auditioned for Last Comic Standing.
Fast-forward 11 years and Schumer is gliding into first place in the hearts of comedy lovers everywhere with a highly coveted Netflix special that paid her a reported $13 million, according to Vanity Fair, and a new film that's anything but a Trainwreck—so to speak.
Schumer produced and stars in I Feel Pretty, a film about a severely insecure woman who bumps her head on a bike at a SoulCycle class and then becomes delusional about her appearance. In short, she thinks she looks like a super model.
When the trailer was released, Schumer was trolled on social media by detractors who claimed that the film promotes body shaming. Amy snapped back online and in a recent interview with Great Day Washington.
"It wasn't about me body shaming myself," says Schumer. "It's about a girl with really low self-esteem and I think that's something we can all relate to—everyone has had those days or those years. [It's about her] realizing the beauty within and who she is as a friend and as a person."
Schumer goes on to say she can't wait for people to see the film in the aftermath of the controversy.
"It made me really excited for people to see there is no body shaming in this movie," says Schumer.
But one thing that is visible in the movie is a multicultural cast of characters, including supermodel-turned-actress Naomi Campbell and Saturday Night Live alum Shasheer Zamata, who is a graduate of the University of Virginia, and a host other multicultural faces and diverse bodies seen on the Pretty screen.
"I think we are all learning so much in these last couple of years and opening our eyes and realizing that it's not enough to just see everyone as equals. Once you see that there's such a disparity, and such a lack of inclusiveness, then it's your job and responsibility to do your part to lift people up—if it's people of color, if it's body inclusiveness, trans people, people with disabilities—and so we were really excited to take part in that through this movie," says Schumer.
I Feel Pretty opens in theaters everywhere Friday, April 20.
Markette Sheppard is host of Great Day Washington and your resident "Mom at the Movies." She is also an avid film lover, a wife and mother of a rambunctious 5-year-old. You can see more of her movie previews and reviews weekdays at 9 am on WUSA 9.
