New 'Price Of Beauty' Preview Puts Jessica Simpson In A 'Fattening Hut'

Ever since Newlyweds went off the air, we've been dreaming of the day when Jessica Simpson would return to television — and watching out for any news about "The Price of Beauty," the new show on VH1 that features our favorite blond popstar going international in exploration of cross-cultural beauty ideals. It's still a couple weeks until the show's premier (March 15th! Mark it!), and apart from a dishy interview in the latest issue of Allure, info about "The Price of Beauty" wasn't exactly flowing freely. Until today!

In the show's first official preview, we open with flashes of a red-carpet Jess — flashing her trademark smile and posing easily for the photographers — while her familiar, Southern-accented voice talks frankly about the pressure women feel to be beautiful. Cut to Jessica, fresh-faced and sophisticated in a black blazer, asking, "But what defines beauty?"

A quick series of shots reveals the star in various settings while she goes on to say that she's about to travel the world, exploring the concept of beauty across cultural lines. We see her dressed as a geisha, dancing in a traditional costume with a plate of candles (we think?) balanced on her head, and laughing with surprise when a mahogany-skinned woman says, "Fat is beautiful!," before cutting to the promo screen for the show's premier. But the real fun comes after the break, when Jessica presents a couple of her favorite moments from the show.

We start off in Paris, where the all-American star is about to participate in a runway show alongside a dozen leggy French models. A perfectly-poised European blond urges her to walk the runway -- cut to Jessica confessing that this is a "huge fear", and worriedly explaining that she's "not a model". Does she chicken out? We're guessing not; the next shot shows her strutting her stuff in a high-necked couture gown, looking ready to kick some ass.

And then, the payoff: for a girl who's gotten more than her share of flak for not being a pin-thin pixie, it's great to see Jessica traveling to Uganda, where the culture of beauty says that bigger is better. We get the same shot of her laughing and saying, "Wow!" as her guide informs her that here, fat is beautiful. Then, the group crosses a dusty yard to a small hut, where a woman is getting beautified for her upcoming wedding. While friends hand the bride-to-be an endless supply of food and drink, the guide explains, "They want you to go to your husband when you're looking good, looking beautiful -- and beautiful is big!" Jessica, wide-eyed, asks how long she's been in the fattening hut.

The answer? Two months. (At this point we get Cacee Cobb, also a participant on the show, shrieking at the camera: "Two months! In the fattening hut, getting fat for her MAN!") Later, Jessica grins in amazement while she recounts the story, saying that it was the complete opposite of everything she's ever known.

The preview wraps up with a reminder not to miss the show's premier. We don't know about you, but between the cool concept, amazing stories, and charismatic star, we're definitely tuning in for this one!

Did you dig the teaser?

Tags Cacee Cobb, Jessica Simpson, The Price of Beauty, Video