It’s been so great to see so much of Linda Evangelista lately at the fashion weeks. She was at NYFW, she was at Vogue World, closing the show with the other supers, Christy, Cindy, and Naomi, and she was in Milan yesterday, seated front row alongside Suki Waterhouse, Naomi Watts, Kate Moss, Cara Delevingne, Demi Moore, Naomi Campbell, and more. 

 

Linda’s return, of course, coincides with the release of the docuseries, The Super Models, on Apple. Have you watched yet? It’s only been a day, so we can talk more about it maybe next week, but for now, let’s just talk briefly about Linda’s involvement – because she’s the one who retreated from public life for years for health reasons, including breast cancer, which she only just revealed recently. 

She also talks in the documentary about how her ex-husband, Gerald Marie, the former head of Elite Modelling, abused her. Multiple women have accused Gerald Marie of abuse and sexual assault, but the case was closed earlier this year due to statute of limitations. Here’s a clip from the part where Linda describes what she experienced. Trigger warning for sexual assault and violence: 

 

Linda’s voice, as you hear, is still as soft and girlish as it always was, but that doesn’t mean her words don’t carry power, that her delivery isn’t effective. Her parts in the series are among the most moving and poignant. In many ways she’s the emotional center of the series. Which feels fresh and revelatory, at least to me, because back then, Linda was my favourite – not only because she’s Canadian, but because she was such a chameleon, a mystery, an enigma. All the supers loved the job, but the way Linda loved it was to fully disappear into the vibe of the clothes and shape her energy, her look, her personality to what it was that she was modelling at any given moment. 

So the Linda we’re meeting in The Super Models feels like it’s almost an introduction, and one that she’s earned. The fact that she’s capping that off by being so present, so visible, during the busiest time in the industry she helped elevate is exactly right.