Raven Symoné’s Body Was Edited To Appear Thinner On ‘That’s So Raven,’ Producers Claim

Raven-Symoné as Raven Baxter on That’s So Raven was a pillar of representation for many teenage girls. However, the new book, Disney High: The Untold Story of the Rise and Fall of Disney Channel’s Tween Empire , author/journalist Ashley Spencer unearthed a claim that the network would adjust Raven’s appearance using CGI.

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Per E! News , “Disney Channel was going crazy about it,” said Dava Savel, who was a co-producer and writer for the series, regarding Raven’s fluctuating weight . “And they handled it in really bad ways. But it was never to her face.”

Ironically, this happened more than once, but most notably on an episode from the show’s second season titled That’s So Not Raven, where Raven was promoting body positivity . In the episode, another model was chosen to walk in a runway show because of her thinner frame.

According to the book, “multiple people involved in the episode” told Spencer that a network executive instructed the show’s visual effects team to alter footage to make Raven seem thinner in the show’s final scenes.

“It was shameful,” producer Michael Feldman stated of the alleged adjustments. “I don’t know how they could look at themselves and do that. The very thing that she wanted to do a story about was literally done to her. It’s still a shocking thing to me that they were that tone-deaf. ”

Adam Bonnett, the former head of Disney Channel original programming, added that a decision like that was “not something I would have asked for,” but did remember the body modifications took place in postproduction for later episodes. “There was some stuff done to make Raven[‘s attire] look more flattering in certain scenes,” said Bonnett, referring to one episode about a school dance.

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The child star has been quite vocal about her struggles with projections and perfectionism when it came to her looks.

“My dad suggested strongly that I should get my breasts reduced. He was like, ‘So you don’t feel bad, is there anything that you want?’ I was like, ‘Yeah, if I get lipo, will people stop calling me fat?’” Raven recalled in August 2023 on her podcast, The Best Podcast Ever with Raven and Miranda . She admitted to having two breast reductions and getting liposuction all before she turned 18.

Raven starred on the hit series for four seasons, garnering two Emmy nominations during its initial run. She reprised the role in July 2017 for the spin-off, Raven’s Home . The latter ran for six seasons before getting cancelled in Sept. 2023.

Disney High: The Untold Story of the Rise and Fall of Disney Channel’s Tween Empire explores the rise of Disney Channel and highlights the “untold story behind the channel’s evolution and its impact on the entertainment world.”

Raven-Symoné Recalls Having Lipo, 2 Breast Reductions Before Turning 18