The Super Models Documentary Takes an Unflinching Look at the Modelling Industry
Scheduled for release on September 20, 2023, The Super Models is an Apple TV documentary about the five legendary supermodels of the 90s: Cindy Crawford, Linda Evangelista, Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington, and Tatjana Patitz.
These five models have one more thing in common: the “Freedom!” music video for George Michael where they were featured in 1990. Instead of taking on roles as the singer’s love interest, they were featured on their own, sans George Michael, and lipsynched to his song.
The four-part series takes a look at their experiences back then and now. It shows Cindy Crawford remarking on how they looked powerful and how they started owning that power or at least the idea of it but it also examines the ugly underbelly of modeling. Domestic abuse, addiction, and racial inequality were only some of the issues that they encountered.
Naomi admitted that many people assume that they don’t get hurt, cry, or feel sad which is inaccurate. Out of the four surviving models (Tatjana passed away from breast cancer earlier this year), Naomi’s life has been the most eventful. She never met her biological father and was discovered at the young age of 15 while shopping in Convent Garden. She revealed that she would accept and go on jobs as a teen. According to her, the late 80s and early 90s were challenging decades for black models because they weren’t given the same opportunities as white models.
In one scene, Linda shared, “Naomi, I thought, was more beautiful, had a much more rocking body than I did and a better strut, and I’m like, ‘Why aren’t they booking her?”
Believing the industry to be unfair, her fellow models advocated for Naomi. There were several times when Linda and Christy would refuse bookings unless the client also hired Naomi. These acts of kindness from her colleagues kept Naomi going. In addition to blatant racism, Naomi battled a cocaine addiction at 20 years old that led her to check into a rehab facility. She also dealt with anger issues that were an offshoot of her anxiety and fears.
Linda, on the other hand, experienced domestic abuse from her agent, Gérald Marie. They married when she was 22. Linda recalled how her ex-husband was careful not to touch her face when he got physical with her. After six years of marriage, they divorced and he was accused of rape and sexual misconduct. Aside from being a survivor of domestic abuse, Linda is also a breast cancer survivor. She claimed that the disease left her disfigured and constantly depressed.
But at the heart of their glamorous lives and less glamorous struggles, the documentary focuses on the special bond that these supermodels have shared with each other through the years. “This is my class. This is the group I came of age with,” declared Christy. Naomi also credited the other women who fought for her. “They supported me and stood by me. Linda would tell people: ‘if you don’t book Naomi, you don’t get me,” she recalled.
