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Linda Evangelista has candidly revealed how she was pressured into taking nude photos at the age of 16.
The Canadian, now 58, made the shocking revelation during the Apple TV+ documentary The Super Models.
She said she “freaked out” after being asked to take off her clothes for a modeling contract in Japan.
Elsewhere in the program, Evangelista also alleged that ex-husband Gérald Marie abused her during their five-year marriage.
Canadian supermodel Linda Evangelista, now 58, has revealed how she was pressured into taking nude photos at the age of 16 in new Apple TV+ documentary The Super Models
She said she ‘freaked out’ after being asked to take off her clothes for a modeling contract at age 16 (pictured in 1985, aged 20)
In the upcoming series, Evangelista revealed, “It’s ironic that my parents let me go to Japan at the age of 16 with a modeling contract.
“They didn’t let me go on the school ski trip, but they did let me go to Japan.”
She continued, “When I arrived in Japan, the first thing they asked me about was nudes and they wanted to take all my measurements and take off the clothes.
‘They made a composite and it had my measurements on it and I didn’t want to take my clothes off.
‘I panicked a bit. I should never have gone there alone.’
The beauty, who was enrolled in a local modeling school at the age of twelve, concluded: “I went home. I kind of gave up.”
Meanwhile, the model claimed her ex-husband, now 73, abused her during their five-year marriage.
She was married to Marie between 1987 and 1993, during which time he was European head of Elite Model Management.
Discussing their relationship, Evangelista said: ‘I found out that maybe I was in the wrong relationship.
“It’s easier said than done to end an abusive relationship.” I understand that concept because I have lived it. If it was just a matter of saying, “I want a divorce, goodbye”… that’s not how it works.
Elsewhere in the programme, Evangelista also alleged that ex-husband Gérald Marie abused her during their five-year marriage (pictured in 1991)
“He knew not to touch my face, and not to touch the moneymaker, you know?”
She continued, “I married him when I was 22 and I got out when I was 27 and he let me out as long as he got everything. But I was safe and got my freedom.”
In 2020, Marie was accused of rape and sexual misconduct by seven women, with Evangelista admitting she believed their claims while praising their “courage and strength.”
She went on to say that they had given her the “courage” to speak out, but that their accusations had “broken my heart.”
Evangelista stated in the documentary: ‘Thanks to the strength of all these women who came forward, God bless them all, it now gave me the courage to speak…
“I would like to see justice served. I would love for holes like that to think twice and be afraid, and I would like women to know they are not alone.”
In a statement to Apple TV+, Marie denied the abuse claims and said he “never committed the slightest act of violence.”
MailOnline previously contacted Marie’s representatives for further comment.
In the Apple TV+ docuseries, the runway queen chronicles her illustrious career alongside fellow supermodels – Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbell and Christy Turlington – as the legendary stars reflect on how they came to dominate the fashion industry.
Evangelista (seen left in 1995 and right in 2022) broke down in tears while discussing the rare reaction she had after undergoing CoolSculpting, which left her ‘disfigured’
The catwalk sensation (sen in a promo shot for her new docuseries) has since undergone two liposuction surgeries in an attempt to correct the problem
However, the four-episode project also addresses many of the issues the ladies face, including Evangelista’s battle with depression after she suffered a rare reaction to the procedure known as CoolSculpting, which was designed to reduce her fat cells, but instead made them be enlarged.
Speaking exclusively to DailyMail.com, the project’s directors, Roger Ross Williams and Larissa Bill, revealed how the mother-of-one could be seen “processing her emotions in real time, on camera” as she reflected on her ordeal.
Talking about filming Linda’s moving confessional, Roger said: ‘It was such an emotional interview… She said she deserved it and I said, “No, you don’t deserve this.” But it was what she felt. She was just so honest about it.”
Separate interviews were conducted with each model, giving them the chance to reflect on their lives and the iconic careers they enjoyed, and Evangelista’s candid confessional became so emotional it left the entire crew in sobs.
Roger, who won the Oscar for Best Documentary Short Film in 2009, explained: ‘Larissa and I were in tears, and so was everyone in the crew. It was like an emotional interview from start to finish, we were crying the whole time. I’m surprised we even have anything.
‘She let go of so much that she had never talked about. You see her guilt and processing in real time on camera, and that was an incredible interview.”
Evangelista spent six years ‘in hiding’ after her rare reaction, previously telling Vogue she was ‘so depressed’ she ‘hated’ herself after being left ‘permanently disfigured’ and ‘brutally disfigured’.