EXCLUSIVE: Jonah Hill's 'John Candy Dream' Killed Off By Actor's Staggering Weight Loss
Jonah Hill's dramatic weight loss reportedly killed his dream of becoming the next John Candy.
Oct. 17 2025, Published 5:24 p.m. ET
Jonah Hill is "dying inside" after realizing Hollywood thinks he was "funnier when he was fat" – just like the late comedy legend John Candy, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The actor, 41, who has undergone a dramatic weight-loss transformation in recent years, has privately spoken about the mixed reactions he continues to face as he films his new comedy Cut Off.
Comedy Style Before The Weight Loss
Jonah Hill showed off his slim new frame on set in Los Angeles.
Hill, who is directing, producing and starring in the upcoming film, was recently photographed on set in Los Angeles wearing a loose-fitting Liverpool jersey and jeans, showing off his slimmed-down frame.
But behind the applause for his transformation, the Superbad star has reportedly faced a recurring comment in Hollywood circles – that his comedy "hit differently" before his weight loss.
A source close to the new production said: "Jonah's proud of where he is now, both physically and mentally, but it does sting when people say he was funnier before. He's heard it more than once – that he had that John Candy quality when he was heavier. He respects the comparison because Candy was a legend, but it's hard when it comes as a backhanded compliment."
Struggling With Hollywood's Double Standard
Hill reportedly compared his career struggles to John Candy’s legacy.
The source added: "Jonah's humor used to be about his size. He was always the sharpest guy, but also the heaviest guy, in the room. But he's dying inside as he wants people to remember his comedy comes from timing and honesty, not a number on a scale."
Hill's new project Cut Off, co-starring Kristen Wiig, Bette Midler and Nathan Lane, follows two entitled siblings whose wealthy parents suddenly cut them off financially.
It marks Hill's return to directing after his critically acclaimed Netflix documentary Stutz (2022), which explored his therapy sessions with psychiatrist Phil Stutz and his struggles with body image.
Haunted By the Ghost of John Candy
Insiders revealed he still battles body image scars from childhood.
In that film, Hill said: "When I was a kid, exercise and diet was framed to me as like, 'There's something wrong with how you look.' But never once was exercise and diet propositioned to me in terms of mental health. I just wish that was presented to people differently."
He also admitted growing up overweight "intensely f----- me up" and inside he still feels like "a 14-year-old boy who's very overweight and has acne and feels very undesirable to the world."
Those who know Hill say he relates deeply to the late John Candy, the beloved Canadian actor who became a defining face of 1980s comedy through roles in Planes, Trains and Automobiles, Uncle Buck and Cool Runnings.
Candy, known for his warmth and physical humor, died in 1994 at the age of 43 from a heart attack while filming Wagons East! in Mexico.
Fighting to Redefine Himself
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Hill first slimmed down following advice from his previous co-star Channing Tatum.
"Jonah grew up idolizing comedians like John Candy," said another insider. "He knows that John's weight became part of his brand, even though John himself hated that. Jonah's talked about how much that parallel hits home – people laughed at the big guy, but they didn't always see the pain behind it."
The source continued: "There's a bittersweetness to it. Jonah doesn't want to be defined by his size anymore. He's healthier and happier now, but he still gets told he was funnier when he was bigger – just like John Candy did in his day. It's an old Hollywood problem: people love their comedians broken."
Hill, who first slimmed down in 2011 on the advice of his 21 Jump Street co-star Channing Tatum, has become an advocate for body positivity and mental health awareness.
While he has stopped promoting his physical transformation, friends say he hopes audiences will learn to laugh with him – not at him.
