Taylor Momsen Reveals Childhood Bullying Over Role in ‘The Grinch’
4 min read
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Taylor Momsen discovered that Jim Carrey wasn’t the sole Grinch she had to deal with as a child. During a recent visit to her Gossip Girl costar Penn Badgley’s Podcrushed podcast, the actress and musician, who was seven years old when she first played as Cindy Lou Who in How the Grinch Stole Christmas, stated that she was extensively bullied by her classmates for starring in the 2000 holiday classic. “First and foremost, The Grinch affected my life in a variety of ways, one of which was that I was relentlessly mocked,” Momsen recalled. “Every time I moved to a new school or went somewhere else, kids didn’t know my name.” I was simply Grinch Girl.” “Not even the character’s name [Cindy Lou Who], simply Grinch Girl,” the Pretty Reckless frontwoman continued.
Taylor Momsen says she was ‘made fun of relentlessly’ as a kid for her role as Cindy Lou in the Grinch:
— Pop Base (@PopBase) September 6, 2023
“Every time I would start a new school or go somewhere, I don't even think the kids knew my name. I was just ‘Grinch girl.’ Not even the character name, just Grinch girl.” pic.twitter.com/4G9R0u4yDB
“I’d gotten used to it, although it was alienating.” While one of his co-hosts speculated that the taunting could have been motivated by “jealousy,” Badgley couldn’t help but poke fun at his former co-star. “No, no,” he laughed. “It was since those young children are very secure in who they are, and they’re just seeing reality.” Momsen, who portrayed Badgley’s younger sister on Gossip Girl, was unfazed by his brotherly rebuke. “I mean, I was the Grinch Girl,” she said, “but I was also Taylor,” Momsen remarked that it wasn’t until middle school that she stopped frequently changing schools and began to form her own buddy circle.
And Cindy Lou was one of the most iconic characters in it, so who cares about those irrelevant kids!
— steven ❀ (@arianaunext) September 6, 2023
Taylor Momsen Claims She Was ‘Made Fun Of Constantly’ At School For Her ‘Alienating’ Part In The Grinch
Taylor Momsen claimed she was bullied “relentlessly” after getting the part of Cindy Lou Who in “How the Grinch Stole Christmas.” “First and foremost, ‘The Grinch’ changed my life in a variety of ways, one of which was that I was relentlessly mocked,” she said on Wednesday’s episode of SiriusXM’s “Podcrushed” programme with Penn Badgley. Momsen told her former “Gossip Girl” co-star that “making friends was always challenging” — and the task became even more difficult after the blockbuster Christmas picture was released in 2000. “I don’t think the kids remembered my name each time I began a new school or moved.” “I was just a ‘Grinch girl,'” she confessed. “Not even the name of the character, just ‘Grinch girl.'” It grew on me, but it was alienating.” The Pretty Reckless frontwoman, 30, characterised herself as “shy” & “socially awkward” while detailing how, during her acting sabbatical, she eventually met pals in middle school. “It was my initial [full] year of school, and I had an opportunity to try & truly make friends,” she said. “I’ve put together a band.” It was my first band, a middle school garage band. We could never agree on a name. But we used to jam after school, which was always enjoyable. I was composing, singing, and playing guitar.”
Momsen was cast as Jenny Humphrey in “Gossip Girl” in 2007 when she was 12 years old, and she was quickly pulled out of her routine. “I relocated to New York. “The band fell apart,” the “My Medicine” singer revealed, before adding, “We were going to be huge.” It was a tremendous letdown.” Momsen was establishing her new rock band, The Pretty Reckless, two years later. ” It did not take me that long to restart it all in New York,” she recalled. “It took some time to find suitable band members…” “I really wanted to create my own kind of impromptu family,” Momsen said that she might have gone forward as a single act, but she did not want to be in the industry by herself. ” Instead of doing things alone, I wanted to be a part of something.” I envisioned myself as The Beatles, not Elvis Presley. Who wants to accomplish this by themselves? “My intention was to share it with other people,” she explained. Momsen debuted in the CW drama with Badgley — who portrayed her older brother, Dan Humphrey — for four seasons before deciding to focus on her music. She decided to leave the programme after investing a lot of her free time working on songs since she felt alienated from her co-stars due to their enormous age difference.
