Milla Jovovich Says Pregnancy Opened Her Eyes

Andrew MacPherson for PEOPLE for use on CBB

When it came time to deliver daughter Ever Gabo, now 18 months, Milla Jovovich was 75 lbs. heavier than when she began — and feeling great!

“You know, I have to say, my pregnancy for me was amazing,” she tells PEOPLE in their Beauty After Baby special. “I really felt great, I was really happy. I gained 75 lbs. but that didn’t stop me from … feeling really beautiful.”

The model, actress and clothing designer ran into some unexpected negativity from others though. She explains,

“By the time I had my baby I weighed 197 lbs.! For the first time I understood what it felt like to be a heavier person. I would go into a store and the saleclerks would give me an attitude, or sneer because I was asking for a size they didn’t carry.

I never expected people to be so judgmental of a pregnant woman! It changed my views of being beautiful, because in my eyes I was beautiful.”

After Ever’s birth on November 4th, 2007, Milla decided it was time to lose the weight — and that meant a major adjustment in the kind of foods she was eating!

“A lot more diet, a lot more exercise,” she laughs. “Definitely having a baby completely changes a woman’s body so I’ve just had to be a lot more strict about what I eat and just keep the food really healthy, rather than my old chili cheeseburger diet I used to have!”

Source: PEOPLE, May 11th issue. For more with Milla, check out this video of her and Ever’s photoshoot!

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Comments

Gabrielle on May 8th, 2009

Wow…what a beauty…both Ever and Milla! I have always thought Milla was beautiful…even 75 pounds heavier…

anon on May 8th, 2009

They’re both gorgeous. I like the practicalness of evers haircut.

Nikki on May 8th, 2009

What a beautiful, beautiful little girl. WOW!

french gigi on May 8th, 2009

those ladies are stunning!

Jo Ann v. on May 8th, 2009

They are so beautiful ! And Ever manages to have more awesome eyes than her mother !!

kayde's mommy on May 8th, 2009

That little girl is gorgeous!!!

Megan on May 8th, 2009

Attitude I can believe (hello, we all get that from sales clerks, pregnant or not). But I doubt people really sneered at her for asking for a size they didn’t have. I think that’s one of those things that gets blown out of proportion in your mind when you feel self conscious and vulnerable, you know ?

gianna on May 8th, 2009

Now that’s a gorgeous baby. stunning eyes and lips

justjuicyg on May 8th, 2009

WOW!!!! What gorgeous eyes. Both ladies. They remind me of the sky and ocean

alexa kaelyn on May 8th, 2009

ever is a stunning baby girl

babyboopie on May 8th, 2009

Oh my god, Ever is the most beautiful baby girl I’ve seen on this site in a while, I love her eyes! Beautiful!

Lis on May 8th, 2009

That photo is absolutely stunning. Ever really looks like her mama in this pic…they both have the most gorgeous eyes.

SARA on May 8th, 2009

Ever is GORGEOUS!

Alex on May 8th, 2009

They are a beautiful pair, and I’ve always enjoyed seeing photos of them . That said, I would like to comment on the weight issue, because although Milla should NEVER have been judged by shop assistants and the like, it isn’t generally a good thing to be gaining that much weight during pregnancy and most doctors will specifically warn against it. I’m mentioning this only because I know there are people who read this who don’t have babies yet and I wouldn’t like them to have the impression that it is advisable to gain the amount Milla did. This isn’t a criticism of Milla, because I know there are people (I have personally seen it happen) who gain weight during pregnancy just by looking at food (!). I love this family and I think Milla is stunning at any weight.

Myam on May 8th, 2009

That is a gorgeous photo! Ever looks a bit like Shilo.

Jasmine on May 8th, 2009

I think Milla makes a great point about how badly some people (especially in certain parts of the country and in certain circles) treat fat people. She was pregnant and fat and got attitude (probably at some snooty store in LA where asking for anything over a certain size is the equivalent of spitting in someone’s face) but some people are genuinely hostile toward overweight people. If you don’t believe me, look at the comments whenever Carnie Wilson is featured.

To be fair, women also like to comment on how other women are too skinny and immediately assume they have an eating disorder. It does seem within the female gender, if you’re not critical of your fellow sisters, you’re not breathing.

Patrice on May 8th, 2009

I love Milla, and think that Ever is one of the most beautiful babies around : ) However, I really cannot understand how some women justify gaining such enourmous amounts of weight during a pregnancy. It isn’t good for you OR the baby. I understand that sometimes in cannot be prevented (gestational diabetes, multiples, etc.), but if you are a healthy person carrying one, then a single baby weighs 9 or 10 lbs at MOST. What are the other 66 for?

mt on May 8th, 2009

WOW, I always thought Ever was beautiful but since I’ve seen this photo I can say she’s the prettiest little girl I’ve ever seen!!!
This kind of kids are the ones that make me wish even stronger to become a mum one day!

Erica on May 8th, 2009

Ever is soooo gorgeous. I think she’s the image of her dad, though.

FC on May 8th, 2009

I have the magazine, and that photo of her and Ever is just beautiful. Ever has the most gorgeous set of eyes. She’s just a little doll, seriously.

Tippi on May 8th, 2009

Gorgeous! I got this issue of people because I buy it every year-sadly it is mostly recycled pictures of celebrities that they didn’t even talk to-they just used snippits of old interviews. I only bought the mag because I knew Milla and Ever would be in it. This picture made the lackluster issue totally worth it.

Ella on May 8th, 2009

wow look at those eyes!
Ever is just as beautiful as her mama.

Anne on May 8th, 2009

What a beautiful little girl and they look so happy together.

ZBP on May 8th, 2009

I love Milla. She is amazing to me and just a kind soul.
Her daughter is so beautiful.
I would love to meet her.

Alex on May 8th, 2009

Ever has such pretty eyes.

Rayan on May 8th, 2009

WOW! My jaw dropped when I saw that photo! She is breath-taking! What a beautiful beautiful little girl!!!!!!

kait on May 9th, 2009

Most beautiful baby Ever, heehee. Her lips are so pretty (sounds weird, but it’s true!) Now I’m wondering if Milla’s lip shade in this photo is passed on to Ever or if it’s make-up! Gorgeous, these two. They’re my favorite celebrity duo next to Nicole and Harlow.

kait on May 9th, 2009

Oh. And I loveee Ever’s hair. It’s so cute and not something you’d see from the outcome of a child with scissors in their hand saying, “hi Mommy, I wanted to do my own hair.” Too cute.

Mimi on May 9th, 2009

For Patrice -
Pregnancy weight actually consists of a lot more than just the weight of the baby. It was eye-opening to me when I was pregnant.
From americanpregnancy.org:
- 7 1/2pounds is about how much the baby will weigh by the end of pregnancy.
- 1 1/2pounds is how much the placenta weighs.
- 4 pounds is attributed to increased fluid volume.
- 2 pounds is the weight of the uterus.
- 2 pounds is the weight of breast tissue.
- 4 pounds is because of increased blood volume.
- 7 pounds is attributed to maternal stores of fat, protein and other nutrients.
- 2 pounds for the amniotic fluid.
Total: 30 pounds

If you are underweight to start with – which, as a model, Milla was likely to have been, you’re supposed to gain at least 10 pounds more than the recommended 30 pounds. Then if you’re retaining a lot of water, which is common near the end, that adds several more pounds to the scale. So it’s not like she just added 66 pounds of fat on top of the baby’s own weight.

Leigh on May 9th, 2009

Ever has the most amazing eyes!! She is absolutely gorgeous, and Milla is too.
Although it’s not healthy for women to gain so much weight during their pregnancies, I think that a lot of celebrities and models tend to do it because it’s the one time they can just relax and not have to worry about dieting. Think of Kate Hudson, she also gained a lot of weight with her son.

Grace on May 9th, 2009

Oh my gosh, she looks just like my daughter in that photo! Maddie, my 3 year old just said to me, “Mommy is that Bella?” when she saw the image (Bella is my 18 month old!). I only wish I looked as good as Milla

Gracie

Adele (UK) on May 9th, 2009

Ever is such a gorgeous little girl & definately got her mother’s look.

I sympathized with Milla when she was pregnant as I gained 50lb in my 2nd pregnancy. This was due to lack of mobility as I couldn’t walk from 30 weeks as I had a severe case of SPD. It is unhealthy to gain alot of weight, but I was also carrying also of fluid in the womb as well which would have contributed to some of it.

cas on May 9th, 2009

their eyes are gorgeous!

MomE on May 9th, 2009

Wow! I totally understand how she feels! I gained 70 pounds when I was pregnant, and I was 197 when I gave birth. But I’m only 5-4. I didn’t look pregnant. I just looked obese. Prior to that I was a very healthy weight, and got very good attention in stores and from people in general. While I was pregant, people would actually harrass me and make snide remarks when I went shopping. I was so not used to it, and I was so shocked by it! It actually took me a while to realize they thought I was overweight and not pregnant. My experiences really made me see how incredibly mean people can be.

Patricia on May 9th, 2009

Wow, what a beautiful picture. And what stunning ladies! Gorgeous eyes. Ever is gonna be quite a looker when she grows up, just like her Mom:)

Mia on May 10th, 2009

That baby is ridiculously gorgeous, those eyes, and those lips! Giving Shiloh Jolie-Pitt a run for her money lol j/k. I think Ever looks a lot like Milla, but the nose and shape face is more like her father. I hope to see them have more kids, just gorgeous.

Thank you for the post about the distribution of weight in pregnancy, thats really interesting! I figured a lot of weight was from the baby, and fluids, but I didn’t even think about the extra weight from the uterus itself, and change in breast tissue and such. It’s incredible.

lisa on May 10th, 2009

To Megan, who posted May 8th @ 12:49:

Please note, I post this reply with all kindness and no intent to provoke any argument.

As someone who’s been slim and heavier at different times (both post-pregnancy and otherwise), I’ve personally experienced the snobby attitudes you can get when shopping for clothing and you’re above that ‘certain’ size which they do not carry.

What makes me sad is that this was during Milla’s *pregnancy*, but I’m sure the criticism is much more so in Hollywood/California in general than where I live…

YES, store clerks can sometimes buy into their brand’s hype and feel that they are somehow superior – and if you literally don’t ‘fit in’ then you’re also less of a person.

I’ve had this experience in salons and spas, too; these attitudes always prompt me to not only never return to these places but to tell all my friends and family of my experiences.

Fat phobia is rampant and, in a world where doulbe zero is a size to achieve, YES women are facing outright hostility at times for not being slim enough. Hey, most clothing stores where I live limit their sizes at 15 (I’m in Canada; when I go the the US, I find I fit into smaller sizes, FYI).

Anyway, I just wanted to concur with Milla that clerks sometimes DO sneer at you for needing a larger size. Sometimes people are outright rude and even cruel.

And one final thing: if you ever experience this behaviour (not suggesting you, Megan; I’m guessing you’re quite slim yourself)that it would be really helpful to report your experiences in an honest, truthful and factual way to the management. They may also be snobby types OR they may be less than impressed to find that their store’s image might be compromised by the odd clerk/s who feel justified in demeaning potential customers in such a manner!

Ryan on May 10th, 2009

Stunning little girl! Gorgeous mother! This is one heck of a pair! They both have the most beautiful eyes I have ever seen!

LolaD on May 11th, 2009

Beautiful, Beautiful eyes on both!!

Does anyone know where Ever’s dress is from? I love it!!

Jane on May 11th, 2009

Ever is gorgeous!

Lauren on May 11th, 2009

I am glad a celebrity can be honest about pregnancy weight gain. I realize that gaining 75lbs during a pregnancy isn’t normal, it does happen! I gained 45 with my first and I am currently pregnant with my second and seem to be headed on the same track. I excerise at least 4 times a week and eat realitivly healthy. My body just carries extra weight during pregnancy. It is VERY unrealistic to think that all women will gain 25-35lbs. It is most important to be healthy and care for yoursekf and your baby.

Kathy on May 11th, 2009

Megan:
RE: Attitude I can believe (hello, we all get that from sales clerks, pregnant or not). But I doubt people really sneered at her for asking for a size they didn’t have.”

I can actually confer that this does happen. I was obese for a period of my life and I have def seen what Milla is talking about first hand. Especially in the high end stores. I always got the impression that the clerks were actually offended you even came into their store! It was absolutely vile. I don’t know if it’s just in NYC or bigger cities or what! But I do know that I have also had friends experience this as well.

baby nursery decoration on May 14th, 2009

Very pretty baby and momma. I feel so bad for those who are pregnant and in the public eye. You shouldn’t have to feel bad about gaining pregnancy weight.

Jamie on May 15th, 2009

This pair is so blessed! How beautiful!

Of course, I have always thought Milla was a fox. (Very few can pull of band-aids as an outfit–Fifth Element.) As a woman, though, I think it’s more her warm, silly, and not-snobbish-at-all attitude that I find most beautiful. That’s why it seems so horrible that she was treated poorly by other women.

This article just gives me another reason to like Milla…I, too, gained 70 lbs. when I was pregnant (and kept like 50 of it after DD was born because of the lifestyle change). I’ve been all sizes from obese to skinny, and back to obese and seen all of the difference in how the world treats you. It’s not just snobby women in boutiques. EVERYONE does, whether you realize it or not.

I can’t recall being sneered at personally but, in general, people tend to not look fatter women in the eye. Less people greet you or smile at you. People tend to not hold the door open for you, etc.

On the other hand, when you’re thin, the guy standing on the other side of the gas pump will fall all over himself, trying to strike up a conversation!

And nobody is trying to JUSTIFY gaining too much weight. Nobody does it on purpose but sometimes it just happens for whatever reason. It’s not always gluttony and sloth that gets you in these situations and that attitude is exactly the prejudice we’re talking about.

Baby Carriers on May 18th, 2009

Beauties both! I was glad to hear that Milla still felt beautiful 75lbs heavier. I think so many women are just so judgemental of their appearance and even of other women. We are who we are and we’re all beautiful in different ways. I think we all need a little dose of Milla’s self love.

Heather on May 18th, 2009

Patrice, a women has to gain up to 25-30 pounds during the pregnancy. (Milla had to GAIN weight to become pregnant, so her gaining 40-45 pounds would have been fine). Take into account there is amniotic fluid the baby is suspended in, the weight you have to gain in your breasts for milk production, the weight of the baby, and just extra “meat” to support the weight of the baby. That’s how you can justify gaining that weight when you’re pregnant. Its not just the weight of the baby, but the weight your body needs to gain in order to sustain that life. In any case, Milla looked better with the ten-twenty pounds above her frail 120 pounds normal frame.

Heather on May 18th, 2009

I forgot to add that the weight of the placenta as well. I’m not sure if amniotic fluid is the right term. Sorry if its not.

Mommy to Both on July 18th, 2009

The judgements happened to me too with both my pregnancies! I have a hyperthyroid, so I struggle to keep weight on to begin with. People critize me daily for being slim and tall and tell me I am lucky. I am lucky to have a serious medical condition that could eventually kill me – via thyroid storm or thyroid cancer or my heart could blow up in my chest? I’m considered lucky because I don’t have to diet? I don’t think so! I am on daily meds to keep my heart rate under 90 and my weight above 100lbs. I am 5’8″. You do the math.

But with both pregnancies I put on 90+ pounds with my doctors blessing! I got critized for being 200 lbs too – what irks me the most is the people who critized me have NO IDEA what my medical history is or was. I decided to not listen to anyone but my doctors. I do what is right for me and if others don’t like it, too bad. But PLEASE keep your body size comments to yourself. I don’t need or want to hear it! The only time I comment is to tell someone they are beautiful! Because everyone is regardless of their size or shape or hair color or skin color.

If more people focused on themselves instead of critizing others constantly, we wouldn’t have so many body image issues. Take the engergy you spend on ripping others apart and use that energy to work on yourself! You will feel better about yourself and won’t have to make others feel horrible about themselves.

That being said, Milla & Ever are Beautiful! Those eyes – those lips – stunning!

holden on August 2nd, 2009

those eyes are unreal! so beautiful!