Kate Beckinsale Posts 'I Give Up' Message After Speaking Out About Cruel Body Comments

Kate Beckinsale has shared a stark 'bye' post and written 'I give up' in a series of cryptic Instagram updates, weeks after speaking about living with PTSD and months after the death of her mother.

The 53-year-old Underworld actress posted a black image bearing the single word 'bye' on Sunday, 20 September, without a caption. She also shared a photograph of a rainbow over a road on her Instagram Stories alongside the words: 'Congratulations, you won. I give up.'

The meaning of the messages remains unclear. Beckinsale's representative had not immediately responded to requests for comment.

Cryptic Posts Follow PTSD Disclosure

The posts come only weeks after Beckinsale spoke publicly about living with post-traumatic stress disorder and the difficulty of hiding its effects from other people.

In an Instagram video shared on 2 September, the actress said people with PTSD can become extremely good at masking their struggles, allowing them to work, socialise and care for others while privately dealing with nightmares and severe triggers.

She urged people to be more compassionate because there was no way of knowing what another person might be carrying privately. Beckinsale described PTSD as invisible and said those experiencing it could be left feeling profoundly alone.

Grief After Her Mother's Death

Beckinsale has also been open about the grief she has experienced since the death of her mother, actress Judy Loe, in July 2025. Loe died after being diagnosed with stage four cancer, and Beckinsale has previously described the impact of losing her mother.

She has said that her grief affected her physically as well as emotionally, including contributing to changes in her appetite and weight. That grief became part of a separate social media controversy this summer when Beckinsale faced criticism over her appearance.

Actress Hit Back at Online Critics

In August, Beckinsale wiped her Instagram account after sharing screenshots of comments about her weight. Some commenters questioned whether she was eating, while others accused her of taking weight-loss medication and criticised her appearance.

Beckinsale responded by explaining that weight loss can be an early physical consequence of bereavement and criticised strangers for making assumptions about what she had been experiencing.

One commenter also told her they preferred her before hearing her speak. Beckinsale replied that she would remove everything from her account except the books she recommended, before wiping her posts.

Caroline Flack Reference Raises Questions

Another detail surrounding Sunday's posts has attracted attention: reports say Beckinsale's Instagram bio included a BBC article about the death of British television presenter Caroline Flack. The article examined the treatment Flack received from the media and online before she died in 2020.

However, it is not known when Beckinsale added the link or what, if anything, she intended it to communicate. That distinction is important because the actress has not publicly explained whether the link and her latest posts are connected.

Meaning of Messages Remains Unclear

Beckinsale's latest Instagram activity comes after a period in which she has publicly discussed grief, PTSD, health difficulties and the impact of persistent online commentary.

Those documented circumstances provide context, but they do not establish what she meant by 'bye' or 'I give up'. Nor has Beckinsale said that the messages relate to her previous disputes with online critics.

For now, the posts remain unexplained, with the only confirmed information coming from Beckinsale's own public statements and the messages she has shared on Instagram.