Mo’Nique’s career took off in 1999 when the hit show The Parkers debuted. Since then, she’s been commanding the scene with her wit, charm and sass.
In 2001, the actress began to expand her film credits by starring in Two Can Play That Game alongside Vivica A. Fox, Gabrielle Union, Tamala Jones and Wendy Raquel Robinson. She also appeared in the cult classic movie, Baby Boy with Tyrese and Empire‘s Taraji P. Henson.
In 2006, the star told ESSENCE, “I’m just not buying into what’s being sold. I believe that I’m a sex symbol, a movie star and an author. There’s no special formula—I just simply believe that I am.”
“If you’re not at ease with your body, then you need to stand in the mirror every day and look at yourself butt-naked and say, ‘I’m worthy,'” says the actress on advice about loving the skin you’re in. “Look at your rolls, grab them, love’em.”
Mo’Nique debuted a new fitness and lifestyle routine in 2004. “I didn’t want to become a burden because of my weight and the problems that could come as a result of it.” She meets with a trainer five days a week, does cardio exercises, and lifts weights for extra toning and definition.
The comedienne credits her strong sense of self-esteem to her father who often told her she was the most beautiful girl in the world, which is something she believed wholeheartedly.
“I’ve never said, ‘Don’t be healthy,'” the star told ESSENCE in 2006. “But if you’re 375 pounds with high blood pressure and diabetes, should you hate yourself? No. If you turn on the TV late at night, every other commercial is about weight loss. How do you think it makes us feel to hear a size-invisible woman with blond hair down her back say that we can look like her if we take this pill? That’s poison. I say love you, and give yourself 30 minutes a day to exercise and get healthy.”
Mo’Nique has never been afraid to flaunt her big, sexy stardom. In 2007, while hosting the BET Awards, the star stunned everyone recreating Beyoncé’s “Crazy in Love” video choreoography on stage not afraid to show off her moves!
“We should all want to live healthy lives because we don’t want to be in a position where there are things we can’t do and places we can’t go,” Mo’Nique told ESSENCE in 2008 of her healthy lifestyle.
In 2010, Mo’Nique killed Red Carpet season looking goregous everywhere she went.
“I say to those people who are desperately trying to get healthy, in those moments where you feel like you can’t go any further, you can,” the actress said.
In 2014, the actress credited her husband and children for helping her shed all the weight she’s lost. “It truly lets you know what you’re made of,” said Mo’Nique. “People always say ‘Mo’Nique, what motivates you?’ I had to do it for my husband and my children,” she explained. “And I have to get out of my own way.”
“Dear Derriere, I’ve always loved the way you curve into a robust roundness, how you move when I move,” the actress said of her favorite body part.
