Often imitated, never duplicated.
That video catapulted its stars to a completely different level of fame.
They had already conquered the fashion world, coveringVoguesand closing runway shows the world over.
Linda Evangelista, Christy Turlington, Naomi Campbell, Cindy Crawford.Apple TV+
But the supers were something else completely.
“It was just this amazing time with fashion.
I was a poor student, but I aspired from afar.”
Linda Evangelista, Cindy Crawfrod, Naomi Campbell, and Christy Turlington at Versace Fall/Winter runway show, Dec. 1991.Paul Massey/Shutterstock
“I was covering fashion,” Williams says.
“I was doing a fashion series with Veronica Webb, and going to shows.
The women, being backstage at those shows, I mean, I was totally seduced.”
Naomi Campbell.Apple TV+
Crawford in particular was branching out into movies and television with MTV’sHouse of Style.
The supers existed at the nexus of early ’90s popular culture.
They were household names and their own brands.
Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington, Cindy Crawford, and Linda Evangelista.Apple TV+
In Williams' words, they were the “original influencers.”
“Now it’s all fast, and it’s all on Instagram.
But these are the originators.
This was before, this started at all.
This was when it all came together.
Fashion and Hollywood and the music world and MTV.
It all came together to create the beginning.”
Pop stars, movie stars, and athletes became gods of religions unto themselves.
“We looked powerful and then we started believing that,” Crawford says in the docuseries.
But that wasn’t always the case.
“I’ve had to fight those battles.
I have to work harder and fight harder.
Doors were not open for me and I could even win an Oscar and no one calls me.”
“That could stop you in your tracks.
That could have stopped me in my career.
It could have stopped anyone.
But Naomi chose to not let her herself be stopped because of the color of her skin.
She says that in the film.”
“Naomi is tough,” he adds.
Who will not be silenced in any way.
That’s why we love Naomi.
I totally identify with that as a Black man.
No one’s going to stop me either.
I’m inspired by Naomi."
They were replaced by next year’s models and the wheels of fashion continued to turn.
And yet, the Big Four remain Big.
They are iconic in a way that is not tired and overused and meaningless.
“Naomi Campbell WALK!
Walk across the room like Naomi Campbell!”
And her word is law.
it’s possible for you to have both."
“There’s so many ways.
And there’s so many ways to age and be a woman.
And these women have sort of embodied that for me.”
All four parts ofThe Super Modelsare now streaming on Apple TV+.
