Emily Ratajkowski
Emily O'Hara Ratajkowski[3] (/ˌrætəˈkaʊski/,[4] Polish: [ratajˈkɔfskʲi]; born June 7, 1991)[5] is an American model and actress. Born in London to American parents and raised in Encinitas, California, she signed to Ford Models at a young age. Her modeling debut was on the cover of the March 2012 issue of the erotic magazine treats!, which led to her appearance in several music videos, including Robin Thicke's "Blurred Lines", which catapulted her to global fame.[6]
Emily Ratajkowski
June 7, 1991
American
- Model
- actress
2004–present
1
170 cm (5 ft 7 in)[1]
Brown[1]
Brown[1]
- DNA Model Management (New York)
- VIVA Model Management (Paris, London, Barcelona)[2]
Ratajkowski's feature film debut was a supporting role as the mistress of Ben Affleck's character in the film Gone Girl (2014). She appeared in the 2014 and 2015 Sports Illustrated swimsuit issues, and made her professional catwalk modeling debut for Marc Jacobs at New York Fashion Week in 2015. She has also walked on the runways of Paris Fashion Week and Milan Fashion Week. For her international Vogue covers and high fashion campaigns, Models.com ranks her as one of the new generation of supermodels.[7]
Ratajkowski is an advocate for women's health issues as a spokesperson for Planned Parenthood. As a self-identified feminist, Ratajkowski has received both support and criticism for her views on sexual expression. Her essay collection, My Body, was published by Metropolitan Books in November 2021 and was on the New York Times Bestseller list.[8][9]
Early life
Emily O'Hara Ratajkowski was born June 7, 1991[5] in Westminster, London, the only child of American school teachers Kathleen Anne Balgley and John David "J.D." Ratajkowski.[10][11][12] She was raised in Encinitas near San Diego, California. She attended UCLA for a year before dropping out to model full-time.[13] Her father was raised Roman Catholic, whereas her mother is Jewish.[10] Ratajkowski has stated that she ethnically identifies herself as "Polish-Israeli",[4] as her ancestors made aliyah to Israel from Eastern Europe.[14][a] She also has Irish ancestry.[15]
Ratajkowski tried soccer, acting, and ballet before modeling.[3] She participated in a few local theater productions as a child and young teen.[16] Exposure to the nude female figure in photography and art during her formative years, including the work of her father and the photography of Helmut Newton and Herb Ritts, prepared Ratajkowski for nude work. She has said, "We have this culture of men, especially, watching pornography, but then offended by a classic nude portrait or photograph, and I've never felt that way."[17] She was also influenced by third-wave feminism and works such as The Beauty Myth and Promiscuities by Naomi Wolf.[18]
Political views
Activism
Ratajkowski has raised funds,[235] done public service announcements,[236] and committed to a being in a short film promoting reproductive and sexual health for Planned Parenthood.[237][238]
Ratajkowski expressed support for State of Palestine during the Gaza–Israel conflict.[239]
On the eve of the February 2016 New Hampshire Democratic primary, Ratajkowski spoke at a Bernie Sanders rally in New Hampshire to endorse his campaign.[240][241][242] One of the main points of her speech, and her social media activity surrounding it, was to counter Gloria Steinem's statement that young female Sanders supporters were involved in the campaign to meet potential male romantic partners.[243][244] In 2020, she again endorsed Sanders for the Democratic nomination.[245][246]
Sexuality and feminism
Ratajkowski described the pressure that she endured as a youth around her sexuality and her thoughts on female sexual empowerment, in Lena Dunham's Lenny Letter newsletter on February 16, 2016.[247][248][249] Elle magazine, Esquire magazine, and Harper's Bazaar republished her letter,[250][251][252] which drew praise from critics including Glamour magazine's Hayley Spencer,[253] The Huffington Post's Jenavieve Hatch,[254] Cosmopolitan magazine's Nikki Kinstlinger,[255] Rachael Moon of the Daily Mirror,[256] and Georgia Simmonds of Marie Claire, who lauded Ratajkowski for observations, calling the letter "powerful".[257] Salon's Erin Coulehan described the essay's identification of a societal catch-22, in which showcasing female sexuality that may "offend, excite, or create envy" leads to criticism and body shaming.[258] InStyle's Isabella Silvers concurred that "female sexuality isn't always for the benefit of someone else".[259] Charlotte Gill of The Independent admitted that she was in the minority in finding the letter "rambling" and "dull".[260]
In an October 2014 Cosmopolitan interview, Ratajkowski said she enjoys freedom of sexual expression "while still being a feminist",[81] and is outspoken about using her celebrity to support the empowerment of women and women's sexuality.[261] However, Amanda Hess of Slate questioned whether she is a feminist or an opportunist exploiting feminism.[262] Ratajkowski defended Kim Kardashian from criticism when Kardashian posted a controversial nude selfie on Instagram in March 2016, saying that women have the right to "express their sexuality and share their bodies however they choose".[263] Then, Kardashian and Ratajkowski jointly advocated via social media for female sexual empowerment and against body shaming; nearly one million of their social media followers responded positively, and prominent global media outlets took notice.[264][265][266] Commentator Piers Morgan reacted to Ratajkowski's letter by saying that her form of feminism was a misguided affront to true feminism,[267] labeling it pseudo-feminist gibberish.[268] After Morgan wrote that "feminism as it was intended is dead", the Chicago Tribune's Heidi Stevens, as well as The Daily Telegraph's Helen Pankhurst said that Ratajkowski neither killed nor bolstered feminism.[269][270] Women's Wear Daily's Taylor Harris questioned the impact of Ratajkowski's feminism,[271] as did The Independent's Gill, saying that Ratajkowski's professional activities "continued to advocate industries that treat us as pieces of meat".[260] Heather Saul of The Independent wrote in support of Ratajkowski in an article subtitled "Ratajkowski is becoming an important feminist voice in the debate over female censorship and sexuality".[272] New York's Allie Jones called Ratajkowski "the best feminist celeb".[273]
In 2021, Ratajkowski published her first book, My Body,[205] which includes several previously published essays as well as personal stories. An excerpt was published in The Guardian.[274]
Personal life
In December 2014, Us Weekly confirmed she had begun dating Jeff Magid, a musician.[275] By early 2018, they had reportedly broken up.[276]
On February 23, 2018, Ratajkowski announced on Instagram that she had married actor and producer Sebastian Bear-McClard, her boyfriend of several weeks, in a New York City courthouse wedding.[277] They lived in the NoHo neighborhood of Manhattan and in Los Angeles.[278] On October 26, 2020, Ratajkowski confirmed she was pregnant. In one of her essays, she wrote about how both her husband and herself did not wish to discuss their child's sex until their child was born.[279][280] She gave birth to their son[281] on March 8, 2021.[282][283] In July 2022, Ratajkowski and Bear-McClard separated.[284][285]
Ratajkowski filed for divorce in September 2022. [286]
On Tuesday, March 19, 2024 Ratajkowski showed off divorce rings on her Instagram account that she had made from her engagement ring. [287]
