Plus-Size Model Was Bullied for Wearing a Bikini. Then She Booked the Biggest Job in the Swimsuit World (Exclusive)
Plus-Size Model Was Bullied for Wearing a Bikini. Then She Booked the Biggest Job in the Swimsuit World (Exclusive)
Michelle LeeTue, May 12, 2026 at 1:30 PM UTC
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Erin Marley Klay
Credit: Erin Marley Klay/instagram
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Erin Marley Klay is a 2026 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Rookie
The influencer and model went viral in 2025 after clapping back at criticism at how her body looked in a swimsuit
Speaking with PEOPLE, the 25-year-old opens up about the body-positivity movement and how she prepped for the biggest modeling gig in the swimsuit world
"I think when something this big happens, you feel everything kind of later," says Erin Marley Klay.
Just one month ago, the 25-year-old Los Angeles model and influencer was announced as one of Sports Illustrated Swimsuit's 2026 Rookies, a class that also includes Olandria Carthen, Bethenny Frankel, Hannah Berner and Remi Bader. But it was only one year ago when she made headlines for facing her online bullies.
In the summer of 2025, Klay — who started modeling in fashion and beauty at age 21 — set an example of facing hate with love after she was body-shamed for her appearance in a bikini. She led her admirable clapback with "light and positivity" on X and at the time told PEOPLE, "What I chose to focus on were all the women telling me how much me being confident in my visibly plus-size body meant to them."
Her confidence looked a little different when she was younger. She wrote on her Instagram about how she'd spew "vitriol" at her reflection, just so she could "get ahead" of what she believed other people thought of her.
Today, she says she's earned a "thick skin" for having worked on her self-love. "I'll say with confidence, [the criticism] has not affected me at all, which is fantastic. I'm just reminding myself that these people are on the other side of the screen and they really don't have any say in what I do or the achievements I get, because all of that's coming from me. The only person that I look to in terms of figuring out how I feel about myself is myself."
Erin Marley Klay behind the scenes of her 'Sports Illustrated Swimsuit' Rookie shoot
Credit: Erin Marley Klay/instagram
That steady mindset is what set her apart and landed her in the pages of the upcoming Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue. "It's like a dream come true, especially looking back to that big moment last year. I'm no newbie to online slander [when it comes to] being a woman in a plus-size body," she now says.
It hasn't fully hit Klay that she's earned a highly coveted spot in a magazine so many other models dream of. Behind the scenes, everything happened so quickly, from the time she interviewed with the publication to the casting (Klay adds that she has submitted open call tapes multiple times over the years) to the shoot in Montauk, N.Y. (the finished photo shows Klay in a sexy yellow string bikini). The whirlwind pace was definitely her speed. "I think having it all happen so quick did not let me overthink anything. I was just really in the moment."
Whenever a model appears in a Sports Illustrated swimsuitspread, the most commonly asked question is: Well, how did you prepare? Klay's pre-photo shoot rituals included a spray tan ("Any color you see on me is not hard-earned through the sun," she jokes) and hair and nail touch-ups to help her "feel fresh." She also had a moment when she thought about undergoing a diet and starting a workout routine.
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"I'm not perfectly body-positive all the time," she says. "You get this huge life-changing [news] and you're like, let me hit the gym, let me drink two gallons of water a day. I got to shape up."
She stayed in that mindset for about two hours.
"I was like, hold on, relax. I got this opportunity because of the way that I look, because of the way that I am. I don't need to go through this huge transformation in 30 days, which, one, wouldn't be healthy, and two, isn't needed."
Erin Marley Klay behind the scenes of her 'Sports Illustrated Swimsuit' photo shoot
Credit: Erin Marley Klay/instagram
At times, social media can feel like we're living in a world that prioritizes appearances over empathy. Klay knows this, and reflecting on her position in the spotlight, she says, "It's hard because you're being looked at by so many people, whether they're looking up at you or they're looking down on you."
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"Any change [in her body] whatsoever will be noticed," she adds. "I think it's important for me to realize whatever my body does, whether it's losing weight or gaining it, it's going to change throughout my life and I have to be ready for those changes and for what people will say or think about them, which is why I'm never placing too much importance on the way I look right now."
Klay is focused on staying in the present moment, but she admits that body positivity is in a "harrowing" place and that societal beauty standards have taken "50 steps back" (this interview comes amid the increased usage of GLP-1 medication for weight loss and increased body-shaming on social media). Still, she praises Sports Illustrated Swimsuit and its editor-in-chief MJ Day for "shining light on diversity," and adds, "it's so important to keep showing up."
on People
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
