Kathy Bates got serious about her health following her diagnosis for type 2 diabetes in 2017, but there was a moment six years prior that truly sparked her weight-loss journey.
At the time, the 76-year-old Oscar winner was portraying sarcastic criminal defense attorney Harriet ‘Harry’ Korn in David E. Kelley’s legal comedy Harry’s Law, which aired for two seasons on NBC before being canceled in 2012.
‘When I was so heavy in Harry’s Law, I had to sit down in between every take, and it was awful,’ Kathy recalled to People on Sunday.
‘I’m ashamed to have put myself through that, to be honest.’
Bates successfully shed 80lbs off her 5ft3in frame before hopping aboard the trendy Ozempic train and dropping an additional 20lbs, which made ‘working a lot easier.’
‘But now that I’ve been able to get really healthy, I can move, I can breathe, I can have fun, I’m not sore,’ the Matlock producer-star – who uses a treadmill – marveled.
Kathy Bates got serious about her health following her diagnosis for type 2 diabetes in 2017, but there was a moment six years prior that truly sparked her weight-loss journey
‘I get tired and realize I’m like an old lady, but even the kids get tired. But it’s been a magnificent experience. I never expected to have this at my age, at the end of my career.’
Kathy previously told the outlet last October: ‘Physically, I’m capable of doing this show. I don’t have to sit down. I can stand up all day long and walk and move and breathe and do so many things that I couldn’t before.’
Bates – who survived ovarian cancer and breast cancer – has even seen an improvement in her lymphedema since shedding weight and she no longer has to wear compression sleeves on her arms.
Read More Kathy Bates flaunts slim figure at SAG Awards 2025 after Ozempic 
In the last few years, more and more people have decided to take the type 2 diabetes drug, which allows them to easily shed weight they openly struggled with for decades but can cause yet-to-be-known long-term effects such as pancreaтιтis.
Celebrities who have admitted to taking semaglutide drugs include Kelly Clarkson, Whoopi Goldberg, Oprah Winfrey, Elon Musk, Rebel Wilson, Chelsea Handler, Amy Schumer, Sharon Osbourne, Sheryl Underwood, Lauren Manzo, Dolores Catania, and Golnesa ‘GG’ Gharachedaghi.
But for every celebrity who admits to Ozempic, there are many more who’ve remained suspiciously silent while slimming including Lizzo, Mindy Kaling, Melissa McCarthy, Khloe Kardashian, Lana Del Rey, Christina Aguilera, and Patricia Arquette.
Obesity expert Dr. Andrew Kraftson said most people taking these medications will hit a plateau around the 18-month mark after starting treatment.
‘You could tell someone that they’re going to lose 15 percent of their weight, potentially, on Ozempic or Wegovy. But once they get to 15 percent, it is not like they’re like, “Oh, now I’m satisfied, great,”‘ Kraftson told the New York Times in 2023.
At the time, the 76-year-old Oscar winner was portraying sarcastic criminal defense attorney Harriet ‘Harry’ Korn in David E. Kelley’s legal comedy Harry’s Law, which aired for two seasons on NBC before being canceled in 2012
Kathy recalled to People on Sunday: ‘When I was so heavy in Harry’s Law, I had to sit down in between every take, and it was awful. I’m ashamed to have put myself through that, to be honest’
2025 vs. 2011: Bates successfully shed 80lbs off her 5ft3in frame before hopping aboard the trendy Ozempic train and dropping an additional 20lbs, which made ‘working a lot easier’
The Matlock producer-star – who uses a treadmill – marveled: ‘But now that I’ve been able to get really healthy, I can move, I can breathe, I can have fun, I’m not sore. I get tired and realize I’m like an old lady, but even the kids get tired. But it’s been a magnificent experience’
In the last few years, more and more people have decided to take the type 2 diabetes drug, which allows them to easily shed weight they openly struggled with for decades but can cause yet-to-be-known long-term effects such as pancreaтιтis
Semaglutide injectables can cost $25/month for qualified patients under insurance, but it costs anywhere between $600 and $1,300 for a month supply of four weekly pens out-of-pocket
Kathy currently executive produces and stars as opioid crisis-battling lawyer Madeline ‘Matlock’ Kingston in Jennie Snyder Urman’s 19-episode legal drama Matlock, which resumes April 3 on CBS
Last October, the cable network renewed the gender-flipped reboot – which boasts a 100% Rotten Tomatoes score – for a second season (Bates pictured on Matlock set)
‘I don’t try to come across as the dream killer, but sometimes you really wonder, what is the hole we’re trying to fill? And will additional weight loss really fill it?’
Semaglutide injectables can cost $25/month for qualified patients under insurance, but it costs anywhere between $600 and $1,300 for a month supply of four weekly pens out-of-pocket.
Ozempic, Wegovy, Rybelsus, Mounjaro, and Victoza should only be prescribed to severely overweight patients suffering from type 2 diabetes – and only one of them (Wegovy) has been approved for weight loss by the FDA in 2021.
The two-time Emmy winner currently executive produces and stars as opioid crisis-battling lawyer Madeline ‘Matlock’ Kingston in Jennie Snyder Urman’s 19-episode legal drama Matlock, which resumes April 3 on CBS.
Last October, the cable network renewed the gender-flipped reboot – which boasts a 100% Rotten Tomatoes score – for a second season.
It’s unclear when audiences will get to see Kathy as Thelma Toole in Ken Kwapis’ long-delayed drama Thelma, which also features John Malkovich and AnnaSophia Robb.
Bates first found fame in 1990 playing psycH๏τic nurse Annie Wilkes, who holds her favorite novelist (James Caan) hostage, in Rob Reiner’s big-screen adaptation of Stephen King’s 1987 novel Misery, which amᴀssed $61.3M at the global box office.
