Chrissy Metz Reveals What Her Abusive Stepfather Did To Her In New Memoir 'This Is Me'
Chrissy Metz opens up about the physical and emotional abuse she suffered at the hands of his stepfather in her book This is Me.
Metz, 37, is part of a loving — albeit problematic — family in the hit drama series This is Us, but in real life, her childhood experiences were far from happy, according to a report from People.
Chrissy Metz's Abusive Childhood
The actress' book revealed that her biological father left her mother, Denise, to care for Metz, 8, and two older siblings, Monica, 15, and Philip, 13. Afterward, Denise had another child, Morgana, with a boyfriend who left as well, then met Trigger, Metz's future stepfather.
In her book, Metz revealed that Trigger was a doting father to his two biological children with Denise. He also accepted Morgana, but treated Metz with disdain with her mother constantly at work.
The disdain turned to physical abuse eventually with Trigger shoving, slapping, and punching Metz' body. Eventually, she realized that her stepfather lashed out at the actress' slightest actions, resorting to hitting her even if she simply "looked at him wrong."
"I remember being on the kitchen floor after he knocked me over, and I was begging to know what I did," she recalls in her book included in an excerpt in People. "He just shoved me hard with his foot."
As she transitioned into her teenage years, the abuse only became worse.
"One time he hit me, and I looked right in his face. If I had a gun, I thought, I would shoot you," Metz remembers, adding that she would be racked with guilt afterward. "How could I think that about this person I loved so much? Because I really did love him. This man did more for me than my father ever did."
Weight Shaming
The actress' body appeared to offend Trigger even as she turned to food for comfort, considering eating as her "only happiness" back then.
To avoid her stepfather's ridicule — she remembers him joking about putting a lock on the refrigerator — Metz began to sneak away to eat in the middle of the night or hole up in the bathroom, always trying to devour her food as fast as possible to evade detection.
As she grew older, Trigger continued to mock her and even began forcing her to weigh herself in front of him. It was a humiliating experience for the actress who would stand on the weighing scale as her stepfather yelled at her.
"'Why are you getting fatter?' he demanded," Metz continues. "I look at pictures of me from that time, and I would be so fine with being that size now. But I thought I was gigantic."
Rising Above The Abuse
Now, as a successful actress living her dream, Metz says she has no regrets. Trigger reached out to express his contrition about his actions and the two even currently have a positive relationship.
Trigger spoke up about the allegations of abuse, saying that he doesn't remember the events the same way Metz does.
"I'll disagree with everything in there, except the part that I love her," he says in an interview with E! News. "I still love her as much as I ever have. I've taken care of her like she's one of mine and I would continue to do so in the future if need be."
