Bethenny Frankel is firing back at ageist body shamers who criticised her appearance during the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit runway show. Last week, the 55-year-old former star of The Real Housewives of New York City walked the SI Swim Week catwalk for the second time, and she also featured in this year's Swimsuit Issue.
Despite Frankel's triumphant turn on the runway alongside models Alix Earle and Brooks Nader, detractors made cruel remarks about her age and physique on social media. The reality TV personality took to TikTok this week to address the hateful comments, defiantly declaring, 'I'll do what the f**k I want.'
She specifically targeted those who described her backside as 'jello,' noting, 'It is jello. I've told you f**king 27,000 times I don't work out.' She added, 'Was I going to do squats for six months? No, because I'm not that vain.'
Frankel said she was not 'going to try to be a model' and instead focused on being herself and 'having fun' on the runway. The former Bravo star then called out the unfair criticism about her age. 'Now I know how old I am. I didn't think about it until last year when everyone made such a big deal about it,' she explained to her online audience.
Frankel, known for her outspoken personality, said she thoroughly enjoyed flaunting skimpy bikinis alongside her Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue peers. 'It is so fun because of the women,' she said in the TikTok clip, adding, 'It's just all shapes, sizes, heights, ages, races, backgrounds…just amazing women.'
Other notable stars who modelled in the show include comedian Tiffany Haddish, Vanderpump Rules alum Stassi Schroeder, and pop superstar Lizzo. 'My best friends were there. They thought I was amazing. They thought I commanded a presence,' Frankel shared.
She also mentioned that her rarely-seen boyfriend, financier Shane Campbell, was there to support her. 'He thought I was the Belle of the ball and was like a stage dad right in front.' Meanwhile, Frankel revealed that her 16-year-old daughter Brynn Hoppy was a fan of one particular swimsuit. 'My daughter loved the black, sort of bondage bathing suit the most,' she said.
'We're good, I'm happy. People are allowed to be happy,' Frankel emphasised in her TikTok post. 'For years people wanted body inclusivity, then people want back to like, the glamazon aliens and...how about this – do what the f**k you want to do. There are going to be so many haters, and the one comfort that I take is that the haters stay longer. They're obsessed. They're just miserable with their own lives; it has nothing to do with me.'
Frankel declared that her critics are 'obsessed with me and that means I'm doing something right.' The Sports Illustrated Swimsuit runway show starring Frankel and more iconic beauties will begin streaming on Hulu on June 9.
