Victoria’s Secret has a new model. Yalitza Aparicio, the Oscar-nominated Mexican actress better known for Roma, is now part of the Victoria’s Secret family. Aparicio shared the news on Instagram in a video that sees the actress talk to the camera while showing off a nightgown and a robe from the brand.
“I would love it if the new generations could accept themselves just as they are, and we could realize that diversity is also beautiful,” Aparicio says in the black-and-white video, adding that using Victoria’s Secret lingerie makes her feel “confident, unique and powerful.” The actress, who has become a fashion icon since her star turn in Roma, looks all of those things as she models for the camera in the ad.
Comments on social media ranged from incredibly supportive to horrible, with Instagram showing her a huge amount of love. One Instagram user said, “It’s about time!!! It was imperative to send the message to women that their bodies are okay and you don’t need to have a runway body to feel pretty.” Others called her a “super icon Mexicana” and noted that she was breaking the European beauty standards prevalent in models.
There was more vitriol on X (formerly Twitter), with some people unfamiliar with her body of work saying she cannot be considered an actress and is more of a socialite as if women can’t be more than one thing.
While others were just, basically, hoping for a return to the “old ways,” saying that before “to be a Victoria’s Secret model, you had to work at it,” and now “everyone can be one.”
All wasn’t lost on X though as some remarked on the importance of the brand “showcasing more normal women.”
Yalitza Aparicio is not the first instance of Victoria’s Secret attempting to diversify their lineup of brand representatives. Last year Sofía Jirau became the first Victoria Secret’s model with Down Syndrome and this year Goyo became the first Afro-latina performer at the Victoria’s Secret fashion show at NYFW.
At the end of the day, beauty is about a lot more than just looking one specific way, and it’s about time big companies recognize the beauty of our communities and that comments stepped in colorism are pointed out for what they are.