Supermodel Linda Evangelista claimed that her ex-husband, Gérald Marie, used to abuse her throughout their six-year marriage.
“I learned that maybe I was in the wrong relationship,” said Evangelista, 58, while discussing her relationship in the brand-new docuseries “The Super Models,” which is currently being streamed on Apple TV+.
“It’s easier said than done to leave an abusive relationship. I understand that concept, because I lived it. If it was just a matter of saying, ‘I want a divorce, see ya’ … it doesn’t work that way,” explained Evangelista.
The icon claimed that Marie, 73, “knew not to touch my face,” stating that it was her “moneymaker.”
“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,” said Evangelista, reflecting on her marriage to the former head of European head of Elite Models. “But I was safe and I got my freedom.”
The Post reached out to Evangelista and Marie for comment.
According to the model, she only felt safe to reveal her truth when several women came forward in 2020 and claimed that Marie had raped and sexually assaulted them during the 1980s and 1990s.
“Thanks to the power of all these women coming forward, God bless all of them, it gave me the courage now to speak,” Evangelista, who praised them for their courage and strength to speak out despite the fact that the allegation “broke” her heart, said.
“During my relationship with Gérald Marie, I knew nothing of these sexual allegations against him, so I was unable to help these women,” Evangelista told The Guardian in 2020. “Hearing them now, and based on my own experiences, I believe that they are telling the truth. It breaks my heart because these are wounds that may never heal, and I admire their courage and strength for speaking up today.”
The former agent was also accused of using his agency to run a sex ring as well as giving models cocaine to keep them thin,
In a statement to Apple TV, attorneys for Marie slammed the abuse accusations saying that he “has never committed the slightest act of violence.”
Marie’s attorneys also told Mail Online that “Gérald Marie firmly objects to the defamatory and false allegations made against him. He refuses to participate in this dishonest media controversy.”
In 2021, the case against Marie was closed by French prosecutors after the statute of limitations ran out.
“I would love that justice be served,” Evangelista said in the docuseries. “I would love for a–holes like that to think twice and be afraid and I would love women to know that they’re not alone.”
“The Super Models,” which details the rise of iconic models like Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbell, Christy Turlington and Evangelist, is currently streaming on Apple TV+.