Emily Ratajkowski has been accused of fatphobia after posting a photo wearing plus-size jeans.
The 32-year-old has been met with backlash after posting a carousel of photos from her latest photoshoot in collaboration with M Magazine.
In most of the photos, the star is seen wearing a bunch of eccentric, early 2000s-inspired outfits which include baggy jeans and halter-neck, sleeveless blouses. But it was one particular photo that really got people talking.
Photo number two in the six-part carousel showed Ratajkowski posing for the camera wearing a buttoned cardigan and a pair of plus-size jeans while stretching out the waist size to show that only half of the pants were actually filled with her body. The sort of "Jared from Subway" pose you could expect to see as part of a weight-loss post from the 2000s.
Have a look at the post below:Of course, fans weren't impressed and started accusing the model of fatphobia.
"What in the fatphobic hell is that second picture?" commented one user while another added: "That second photo is such godforsaken trash. In the year of our lord 2023?? STILL??? Yikes."
"The fact a whole team of people worked on this and thought this was cool is so f***ed up," wrote a third, with a fourth person adding: "Designers won’t make plus sizes unless it’s for a photo opp where a thin person can be quirky."
Others also brought up Ratajkowski's book 'My Body' which was supposed to highlight the recovery of one's power through the reclamation of their body.
"What a strange second photo. And you wrote a book about body image? Mm," one user commented.
And another had a similar view stating: "Writing a book centered [around] body image and then doing the second photo is crazy."
Plus-size model Tess Holliday also commented on the post, using humor to get her point across: "I’ve been looking for those jeans in the second photo if you could just please return them that would cool. Tysm."
In the wake of the controversy surrounding the subject, Gianluca Russo, author of The Power of Plus and expert on the size-inclusive fashion movement, spoke to TODAY saying he normally takes backlash "with a grain of salt."
However, in this case, he does believe "the comments around this photo are warranted, as is a larger conversation."
"This photo could likely be very triggering to someone dealing with the terrible impacts of weight stigma as it so clearly mimics triggering weight loss ads," he told the outlet via email. "The photo of Emily is praising her thinness, and the usage of a very large pair of pants puts even more emphasis on the smallness of her body."
Russo also explained that photo shoot was a missed opportunity to have a critical conversation around body positivity.
"This could have been an editorial that discussed the importance of plus-sizes — especially given Emily’s book on body image — but rather, it furthered a fatphobic image type that we’ve become all too familiar with," he added.
Russo further added the importance of understanding size inclusivity, stating that the photo emphasizes that "people in fashion — both in front and behind the camera — are still uneducated (about) size-inclusivity."
"Even further, it shows that many of them do not care about the importance here," he concluded.
So far, Ratajkowski has not yet spoken out against the backlash, but as more and more people flock to the post to give their opinions on the matter, you'd have to believe that it won't be long before she responds.