Oprah Winfrey reveals the real reason she resigned from WeightWatchers

Ahead of her upcoming TV special shining a light on weight loss medication, Oprah Winfrey revealed the real reason for her exit from WeightWatchers last month, after sitting on the board of directors for nearly a decade.

The 70-year-old media mogul said she parted ways with the company — where she served since 2015 — to avoid the appearance of a conflict of interest.

“I decided that because this special was really important to me and I wanted to be able to talk about whatever I want to talk about — and WeightWatchers is now in the business of being a weight health company that also administers drug medications for weight — I did not want to have the appearance of any conflict of interest,” Winfrey said on Thursday’s episode of “Jimmy Kimmel Live.”

Last year, WeightWatchers acquired a telehealth subscription service, providing access to prescription weight loss drugs, for $106 million.

“So I resigned from the board and I gave, donated, all of my shares to the National Museum of African American History [and Culture],” Winfrey added. “So nobody can say: ‘Oh, she’s doing that special, she’s making money, and promoting …’ No, you cannot say that.”

Winfrey reportedly held about 1.1 million shares in the company, which equates to a 1.43% stake.

The former talk show queen has struggled with her weight for much of her life. She revealed in a People magazine cover story in December that she recently began using an unnamed weight loss medication, saying she’d “released [her] shame about it.”

“The fact that there’s a medically approved prescription for managing weight and staying healthier, in my lifetime, feels like relief, like redemption, like a gift, and not something to hide behind and once again be ridiculed for,” she said. “I’m absolutely done with the shaming from other people and particularly myself.”

Winfrey’s prime-time special, titled “An Oprah Special: Shame, Blame and the Weight Loss Revolution,” is set to air Monday at 8 p.m. ET on ABC.

Filmed in front of a live studio audience, the hourlong special will feature medical experts discussing weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Mounjaro.

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