Dirty Dancing's Jennifer Grey is unrecognizable for new movie role - see photos

Jennifer Grey fans are in for a surprise as the Dirty Dancing actress has a brand new movie role - and she looks so different.

The actress earned praise from her good friend, actress Jamie Lee-Curtis, who took to Instagram to promote Jennifer's latest project.

She shared images of the star in character and wrote: "My friend @jennifergrey is going to BLOW YOUR MIND as Gwen Shamblin in @lifetimetv GWEN SHAMBLIN: STARVING FOR SALVATION! TONIGHT."

WATCH: Jennifer Grey is unrecognizable in trailer for Gwen Shamblin movie 

In the images, Jennifer sports big, blonde hair and a full face of makeup and perfectly resembles Gwen - who is the founder of the Christian diet program The Weigh Down Workshop and as well as the Remnant Fellowship.

Fans weighed on the post and commented: "Ooh I'm excited to see this -- I'm glad she's got this complex character to play. She deserves it," and, "Omg! she looks exactly like her."

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Jennifer recently opened up about what it was like playing the Christian diet guru and admitted she struggled to portray "the personification of anorexia nervosa".

Jennifer is portraying Gwen Shamblin in the new movie

In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Jennifer said she "knew nothing at all" about Gwen before being cast in the role.

"I felt so much heaviness around it," she said. "My first thought was, "Well, this is a terrifying prospect to play somebody so dark, who was a real person just recently on this earth."

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Jennifer continued: "And the next thought was, how can I be part of a story that really corroborates a very powerful voice in our culture, which is about [the importance of] body size and perfectionism?"

jennifer-grey

Jennifer has embraced the new role but admits it's challenging 

She insisted that the role be used as a platform to counter Gwen's message that it is best to be thin.

"She was the personification of anorexia nervosa, which has one of the highest or second-highest mortality rates [among eating disorders]," Jennifer said,

"I thought if I can do this and use this as a platform to raise awareness about seeking treatment, and to show the insanity and the misguidedness of her message, then I would be interested."

If you or anyone you know is suffering an eating disorder, the National Eating Disorder Association Helpline is here to help. Call 1-800-921-2237. 

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