Katherine Heigl was “supposed to be America’s new sweetheart,” but somewhere we fell out of love. Sarah Ball, writing in Newsweek, lays some of the blame for her image as a “diva-like shrew” on "pure sexism. Every decade has a Most Annoying Actress,” Ball writes, “a distinction doled out via a caveman's principles.” But mostly it’s because of Heigl’s own choices.
Sure, “a lot of actors smoke, curse, drink, and mouth off,” Ball writes, “but more than simply daring to challenge chauvinistic mores, Heigl has shot herself in the foot with her delivery.” She's had a long string of public utterances that scream me, me, me, turning her into the tabloids' whipping girl. She recently complained about long days on Grey’s Anatomy, hoping her comment “embarrasses” the show runners. “Embarrass them for what?” Ball wonders. “Keeping her employed? To a country nearing 10 percent unemployment, the remark was tone-deaf." (More Katherine Heigl stories.)