8 Hollywood big stars who ditched meat: You won't believe who's vegan

Many celebrities from Hollywood choose to go on a vegetarian diet or a vegan diet, which means excluding any animal products for health reasons.

Before diving in, let’s understand the key difference: veganism eliminates all animal products, while vegetarianism may still include some animal-derived foods like dairy and eggs.

According to the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (PDF), vegetarians tend to have healthier weights, lower blood pressure and cholesterol levels, and reduced rates of cancer and type 2 diabetes compared with meat consumers.

However, those who are vegan need to be vigilant about including key nutrients in their diet such as vitamins B12, iron, omega-3-fatty acids, calcium, and zinc, as reported by Everyday Health.

Now, that being said, let's find out which modern-day celebrities have given up meat and embarked on their vegan or vegetarian journey.

Take a look:

Zendaya:

The 28-year-old Emmy Award-winning actress is a proud vegetarian, but shockingly she isn't a big fan of vegetables.

According to a report by People, Zendaya shared, “My main reason for being a vegetarian is that I’m an animal lover — definitely not because I love veggies.”

It is worth noting that she first considered going vegetarian when she was 11, after passing a slaughterhouse while on a road trip with her dad.

The Euphoria star officially decided to completely adopt the diet after watching PETA’s (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) Glass Walls featuring Paul McCartney, who believes that “if slaughterhouses had glass walls, everyone would be vegetarian.”

Sadie Sink

The 23-year-old Stranger Things star revealed to Elle magazine that she switched to a vegetarian diet at the tender age of 12, after being inspired by the 2008 documentary Food Inc.

A friend of hers even teased and warned her that she wouldn't be able to have the dedication to last a week, but she took it too seriously and ultimately it became an integral part of her lifestyle, per Everyday Health.

In an interview with GLAMOUR, Sadie mentioned that she always doubted her capability to go vegan.

But it was her experience working with Woody Harrelson and his family that shifted her mind and inspired her to go completely vegan.

“I’d always told myself I could never go vegan. I’m from Texas, my family are big meat-eaters,” the Dear Zoe actress said.

“But, I decided I was going to give it a shot and I went ahead and did it. I made the switch almost five years ago after I worked with Woody Harrelson on a movie,” Sadie continued.

She added, "He's a very passionate vegan and his entire family is vegan as well, so by spending time with them, I was able to learn that a vegan lifestyle is totally doable and it’s not as hard as it may seem.”

Harry Styles

The 31-year-old English pop star shared his diet and lifestyle changes in a 2020 interview with Vogue, revealing that he had been firmly following a pescatarian diet for a while.

For the unversed, the term pescatarian (coined by combining pesce (Italian for fish) and vegetarian is a clue: it's a vegetarian diet that also includes seafood, according to Harvard Health.

“My body definitely feels better for it,” Harry said in the interview.

As reported by Entertainment Weekly, during an August 2022 concert in Madison Square Garden in New York City, a fan threw a chicken nugget aimed at him while he was on stage.

The Golden crooner quipped, "I don’t eat chicken — sorry! I don’t eat meat.”

Ever since then, Harry has been a vocal advocate of cruelty-free living and veganism.

His clean beauty-brand, Pleasing, also mentions that their products are all vegan and cruelty-free, and that they “would have it no other way.”

Ariana Grande

The 32-year-old American songstress has been vegan since 2013.

In an interview with The Mirror in December 2014, Ariana revealed that the sole purpose of switching to veganism was the deep love she has for animals.

“I love animals more than I love most people, not kidding,” she said.

The Positions hitmaker admitted that eating vegan can be complicated but says her usual move is to order what she knows is vegan, like fruit, veggies, salads, and then fill up on other things once she’s home, per Everyday Health.

Notably, Ariana has been an avid speaker for animal rights. 

She also co-founded Orange Twins Rescue, an NGO animal rescue in Los Angeles, California.

Natalie Portman

The 44-year-old Oscar-winning actress went vegetarian at the young age of nine, before switching to veganism in 2011 after reading Jonathan Safran Foer’s 2009 book Eating Animals.

Natalie has spoken about the crucial benefits of veganism and protecting animal rights on multiple public platforms.

While delivering an impactful speech to 16,000 students in Los Angeles for WE Day, a celebration of youth activists, the Black Swan actress said, “Only after I became active in women’s issues did I realize that my veganism was related to those very issues. Dairy and eggs don’t just come from cows and chickens, they come from female cows and female chickens. We’re exploiting female bodies and abusing the magic of female animals to create eggs and milk.”

Natalie also urged people not to feel mortified about their veganism in a non-vegan world.

“So now lots of people make fun of vegans, right?,” she said.

The Thor actress added, “Lots of people make fun of anybody who cares about anything deeply, right? But I’m here to say, it is always a great thing to care … whether it’s environmental issues, animal rights, women’s rights, equality, never be afraid to show how much you care,” as reported by Plant Based News.

Kristen Bell

The Nobody Wants This highly acclaimed actress has been a vegetarian since she was 11 years old.

Kristen became vegan alongside her husband, Dax Shepherd, reportedly after watching Forks Over Knives.

However, she was concerned about the intake of calories, so she switched back to vegetarianism when she was pregnant with her first child, who was born in 2013, per Everyday Health.

Sir Paul McCartney

The 83-year-old Beatles legendary singer became a vegetarian in 1975.

Paul and his wife, Linda, decided to adopt a meat-free diet after seeing lambs playing outside their farm window while they were eating lamb chops.

This unique experience compelled them to reflect on their relationship with meat and entirely adopt a vegetarian lifestyle, according to The Beatles Story.

In an interview with PETA(People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals) in 2008, he explained why he made the decision to turn vegetarian.

The Here Comes The Sun hitmaker stated, “Many years ago, I was fishing, and as I was reeling in the poor fish, I realized, ‘I am killing him — all for the passing pleasure it brings me.’ And something inside me clicked. I realized as I watched him fight for breath that his life was as important to him as mine is to me.”

Billie Eilish

Lastly, the 23-year-old Grammy-winning pop sensation has been vegan since the age of 12.

"I am vegan. I've been vegan for, damn, seven years," Billie mentioned, as reported by Business Insider.

"Once you know that kind of thing and you see it, it's really hard to go back," she said.

The Bad Guy hitmaker continued, "And now, even though I have lots of friends that eat dairy and meat and I don't ever want to tell anybody what to do, I just can't go on in my life knowing what's going on in the animal world and like, not doing anything about it."

"Becoming vegan wasn't like a huge deal for me because meat was never a thing in my life. It wasn't like I missed meat — it wasn't like I had something to miss," Billie Eilish stated on a 2018 episode of the YouTube series Montreality.