It’s probably an understatement to say that, as a culture, we can be pretty unfair to pregnant women. Mothers, whether they’re actively raising children or are expecting, can be stripped of most of their identity. They're viewed as ‘mothers’ and little more, their behaviour scrutinised for not being maternal enough, and they're offered unsolicited advice on birth and parenting.
Celebrities are not exempt from this. In fact, when it comes to famous pregnant people, people can act even more weirdly, surveilling women and speculating over possible pregnancies, obsessing over ‘baby bump debuts’ and their ability to 'bounce back'... or not.
This type of gossip around celebrity mothers was frighteningly common in the early noughties, but it seemed to reduce in the wake of the body positive movement. However, this season of Selling Sunset proves we haven’t moved on from expecting mothers to lose their baby weight.
The much-lauded fourth season of Selling Sunset is, for the most part, everything we wanted it to be. Drama, new cast members, fights and incredible houses to stare at. But some fans are disappointed with one particular aspect, asking: why is cast member Christine Quinn’s post-baby body such a big plot line?
Since the birth of Christine’s son on May 15 this year, Christine’s body has been the subject of many tabloid headlines, such as ‘Christine Quinn flaunted her post-baby bikini body three months after welcoming her son’ and ‘Christine Quinn shows off toned post-baby body just three weeks after birth’. Articles have speculated on her diet, some going as far as suggesting she faked her pregnancy because she simply looks ‘too good’.
And sadly, that fascination has continued into season four of Selling Sunset.
With Christine on maternity leave from the Oppenheim Group during the first few episodes, the show has focused on her personal life. In episode three, when Christine first appears just a few days after giving birth to meet with her co-workers from The Oppenheim Group, Amanza and Vanessa. She wears a figure-hugging dress; the first thing her colleagues say to her when they see her for the first time post-maternity leave is: ‘Look how small you are!’
In the following episode, audiences watch as Christine dedicates her time to exercise, mainly yoga. Davina, who watches her during one of her yoga sessions, says in the interviews: ‘I think Christine is the most impressive mum I’ve ever seen’ and describes her post-baby body as ‘mindblowing’.
It's fair to say that Christine joins the conversation: in show interviews, she's shown talking about ‘constantly doing pilates, yoga’ and says she has thought about getting liposuction. But that's not the point (and whatever she chooses to do with her body is up to her): why did that aspect of her pregnancy have to be such a focus for the show?
Why couldn’t the show explore her challenges as a new mother or her journey to getting back to real estate?
It seems that her storyline has become centred on her ‘bouncing back’. It’s reminiscent of those old tabloids which obsessed over women’s post-pregnancy bodies, only now it’s on reality TV. Why couldn’t the show explore her challenges as a new mother, or her journey to getting back to real estate, instead of how fast she dropped her pregnancy weight?
The women on screen appear to adhere to some high beauty standards - not uncommon for women starring in a hit TV show - but it’s disappointing to see the show seem to reinforce the outdated and harmful idea that women should be focused on shifting their baby weight as soon as they’ve given birth.
It already seems that if you’re a woman in the public eye then discourse on your weight, exercise routine and diet is unavoidable. Making Christine’s post-baby body a plot of Selling Sunset perpetuates this idea that we have a right to comment on women’s post-baby bodies, or expect them to ‘bounce back’ within a particular time frame. It’s a shame to see we’ve not moved on from this rhetoric.
Read More:
Stop Speculating Whether Christine Quinn Faked Her Pregnancy
Jennifer Lawrence Isn’t ‘Debuting’ Her Bump, She’s Just Doing Her Job
Season Five Of Selling Sunset Is Coming Sooner Than You Think