Yesterday, celebrity photographer Marcus Hyde, who has worked with Kim Kardashian and Ariana Grande, was accused of predatory behaviour after a model shared screenshots of their alleged conversation surrounding a photoshoot. In the messages, which began when Los Angeles-based model Sunnaya Nash responded to Hyde’s public callout for models on Instagram, Hyde wrote that he wouldn’t charge Nash if she sent him nude photos of herself beforehand, but would charge her $2000 if she didn’t.
In the screenshots shared to Instagram and then picked up by famous fashion account Diet Prada, Hyde said his reasoning for wanting to be sent nude photos was, “Gotta see if your [sic] worth it.” When Nash replied saying she didn’t feel comfortable, Hyde responded: “Find someone else. I’ll keep shooting celebs.”
Diet Prada shared a side-by-side of Hyde’s request for models and his subsequent conversation with Nash, calling for Kim Kardashian and Ariana Grande to condemn his behaviour. The post quickly gathered traction and both Nash and Diet Prada started sharing messages they were getting from women who had allegedly experienced similar situations with Nash. Most of the names of the senders were covered to keep the women anonymous and their allegations ranged from being asked to send nude photographs of themselves to sexual misconduct and assault during or after photoshoots.
“Lots of girls are dming me coming out that he sexually assaulted them and would manipulate them into having sex with him by not sending their photos after the shoot. Absolutely horrifying,” the model wrote on Twitter, as the hashtag #CancelMarcusHyde started circulating.
A few hours after the allegations were posted, Ariana Grande took to Instagram to write a lengthy post in response. “I have just read some shocking and really heartbreaking stories,” she wrote, before going on to tell all models and artists that they shouldn’t work with photographers who “make you uncomfortable or make you feel like you need to take your clothing off if you don’t want to.”
“If they tell you you have to pay more money if you’re clothed that’s f—d and I’m sorry that has happened to you. I promise there are so many respectful, nice, talented photographers out there,” Grande continued, per PEOPLE.
This morning, Kim Kardashian West broke her silence in a lengthy post to Instagram, saying that while her experiences with Hyde were always professional, she is “deeply shocked, saddened and disappointed to learn that other women have had very different experiences.”
Kardashian wrote that she stands “in full support of every woman’s right to not be harassed, asked or pressured to do anything they are not comfortable with. We cannot allow this type of behaviour to go unnoticed and I applaud those who speak out.”
Hyde is yet to respond to the allegations.
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