Cindy Crawford has called out Oprah Winfrey for making her feel like ‘chattel’ during an early interview in her career.
The supermodel first appeared on the host’s iconic talk show in the mid-eighties, when she was just 20-years-old.
Decades later, Crawford has reflected on the incident and what it’s like to be one of the world’s most famous faces in an eye-opening docuseries. Take a look at the trailer below:
Having made her modelling debut, Crawford would appear on The Oprah Winfrey Show in 1986 – long before she became a household name.
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The segment makes for toe-curling viewing, as the then-20-year-old is introduced with Oprah constantly referring to the model as if she isn’t there.
Even more awkwardly, the veteran talk show host then asks an Elite Modeling Agency’s representative: “Did she always have this body? Stand up just a moment, now this is what I call a BODY.”
Dutifully, Crawford stands but it’s clear how uncomfortable it is with the presenter and John Casablancas discussing the model’s ‘training period’.
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Speaking on her behalf, he tells the audience: “With Cindy, it was much more psychologically she was not sure she really wanted to model… little by little, her ambition is growing.”
Nearly four decades on, Crawford would recall the moment in The Super Models docu-series and stated that she felt like ‘chattel’ throughout the interview.
The now 57-year-old told filmmakers how uncomfortable she was adding: “I was like the chattel or a child, be seen and not heard.”
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Continuing, she said: “When you look at it through today's eyes, Oprah's like, 'Stand up and show me your body. Show us why you're worthy of being here.'”
Although it was acceptable in the eighties, the supermodel has a very different reaction to the incident and empathises with her younger self.
She confessed: “In the moment, I didn't recognize it and watching it back I was like, 'Oh my gosh, that was so not okay really.' Especially from Oprah!”
Her admission was made on during new Apple TV series, which documents the careers of her, Naomi Campbell, Linda Evangelista, and Christy Turlington.
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Exploring their lengthy careers in high-end fashion, with the synopsis reading: “Four women from different corners of the world united in New York… Their prestige was so extraordinary that it enabled the four to supersede the brands they showcased, making the names Naomi, Cindy, Linda and Christy as prominent as the designers who styled them.”
The Super Models is now available to stream on Apple TV.
Topics: Fashion, Celebrity, Oprah Winfrey, Film and TV, Apple, US News
Katherine Sidnell