Serena Williams faces backlash after weight-loss ad airs during Super Bowl LX

The Super Bowl is usually where we see the world’s biggest stars at their peak, but a pre-game commercial featuring Serena Williams has left some fans feeling confused. 

The 23-time Grand Slam champion fronted a 30-second ad for Ro, a telehealth company that provides GLP-1 weight loss medications. 

In the clip, Williams promotes the pharmaceutical service, stating, “I’m moving better on Ro. I’m feeling better on Ro. I’m Serena Williams. This is me, on Ro.” 

During her career, Williams was a powerful symbol of body positivity with her muscular frame, so the shift into weight loss endorsements has sparked a heated debate across social media. 

Many fans took to social media to express their disappointment with Williams. 

“She’s not, and never has been, overweight. Why is she spruiking an eating disorder drug? She certainly can afford not do this,” said one user on a reddit thread about the ad. 

Others pointed to the "fine print" in the commercial, which notes that Williams actually lost her initial weight on a different GLP-1 before switching to Ro for maintenance. 

One fan said they always “side-eye and lose respect” for celebrities who participate in things like this. “How much money do you possibly need?” 

Other fans took to X, calling it “embarrassing” and “such a negative and toxic message.” 

Another fan said, “Serena Williams is going out so sad doing these weight loss ads man. Sad to see she had these body issues even as one of the greatest athletes” 

Others took a more comical approach: “One year serena williams was crip walking and this one she has a weight loss drug super bowl commercial.” 

A noted connection fans have made is that her husband, Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian, sits on Ro’s board. 

Despite the noise, Williams has been open about her decision. In late 2025, she told People Magazine that she turned to the medication after struggling to lose weight following the birth of her daughters, Olympia and Adira. 

She explained that despite training for eight hours a day and maintaining a strict diet, the scale wouldn't budge.

“I had never taken shortcuts in my career and always worked really hard,” she said. “So it was very frustrating to do all the same things and never be able to change that number on the scale.” 

She describes it as making her “feel great” and that she is “light physically and light mentally”. 

“I just can do more. I'm more active. My joints don't hurt as much. I just feel like something as simple as just getting down is a lot easier for me. And I do it a lot faster,” she explained. 

Well, looks like old mate Bad Bunny wasn’t the only one making headlines yesterday…