Filmmaker Judd Apatow has gained approximately 15 pounds over four years while taking Ozempic, according to his wife, actress Leslie Mann, during an appearance on the Aug. 27 episode of Jimmy Kimmel Live!. Mann told guest host Jelly Roll that her husband takes the highest dose of the popular diabetes and weight loss medication but deliberately works to override its physiological effects.
Judd Apatow’s Experiment to Outrun Ozempic
However, Apatow has made it a personal mission to continue eating despite the nausea and reduced hunger typically caused by the drug, according to statements he made at the Comedy Cellar in 2024 and in a profile with Vulture that same year. Mann stated on the late-night program that her husband likes to outrun the feeling that the drug gives users to stop eating.
The filmmaker’s approach involved treating his dosing schedule as a challenge. Apatow previously told crowds that he would eat ice cream while administering the injection to see which force would win the battle. According to Vulture, Apatow stated that his primary goal was not weight loss, but rather to test whether a pharmaceutical intervention could dictate his behavior. He noted that his low self-esteem, which he described as being sedated by food, could not be stopped by an injection.
Public Reaction and Other Celebrity Perspectives
Guest host Jelly Roll expressed surprise at the revelation, quipping that Apatow was overeating the medication. Mann explained to the audience that her husband originally received the shots from a nutritionist without asking what the medication contained, leaving her shocked that he was injecting himself with a mystery substance. Apatow acknowledged that he never checked what was in the syringe when he started the regimen.
The public conversation surrounding GLP-1 receptor agonists involves various experiences among public figures. For instance, actress Chrissy Metz shared with E! News in August 2026 that she began using a GLP-1 medication through telehealth company Ro after extensive research, noting that it helped quiet food noise and reduced inflammation while she performed in Broadway’s & Juliet. In contrast, Apatow’s self-directed experiment remains an outlier focused on actively resisting the drug’s appetite-suppressing mechanisms.
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