Her modeling career has progressed from retail ad work to art house erotica and high fashion. She appeared on the cover of the March 2012 issue of the erotic magazine treats! which led to her being asked to appear in two music videos: the controversial "Blurred Lines" and Maroon 5's "Love Somebody". She appeared in the 2014 and 2015 Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issues. Ratajkowski made her professional runway modelling debut for Marc Jacobs at the Spring/Summer 2016 New York Fashion Week in 2015 and has since walked on the Paris Fashion Week runway for Miu Miu. She was a spokesperson for Buick's Cascada in a Super Bowl commercial during Super Bowl 50.
Ratajkowski began acting as a youth in the San Diego area before she gained a recurring role on iCarly and later roles in major films. Her feature film debut was as the mistress of Ben Affleck's character in the 2014 film Gone Girl. Ratajkowski's 2015 films included: Entourage, We Are Your Friends with Zac Efron (her first leading role), and The Spoils Before Dying. Currently she has several acting engagements in various stages of development.Ratajkowski is an advocate for women's health issues as a spokesperson for Planned Parenthood (PPFA) and supports the right of women to express their sexuality. Her claim to being a feminist has been both supported and disputed. She also endorses Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign.Ratajkowski, an only child,was born in Westminster, London to American parents.At the time of her birth, her mother and father were aged 39 and 45, respectively,and unmarried.Her mother, Kathleen Balgley, a professor of English and a writer, described by Ratajkowski as a "feminist and intellectual",was in London temporarily to teach under the Fulbright Program. Balgley had met Ratajkowski's father, John David "J. D." Ratajkowski, a painter and art teacher,when they both taught at San Dieguito Academy. The family settled in San Diego when Ratajkowski was five. She was raised primarily in nearby Encinitas, California in a small house near the ocean.Ratajkowski's mother formerly taught at California Polytechnic State University.Ratajkowski is of Polish, German, Polish Jewish and Irish descent.Her father was raised Catholic, while her mother was raised Jewish. She told Niamh Horan of the Irish Independent: "Both my grandmothers are from Ireland". When asked about her heritage in 2012, Ratajkowski answered: "Polish Israeli".She lived in, and traveled to, many parts of Europe during her youth, including long periods in Bantry, County Cork, Ireland, and Mallorca, Spain.She spent her young adult summers in Ireland until she became a full-time model. Ratajkowski grew up without television; she tried soccer, acting, and ballet before modeling.Exposure to the nude female figure in photography and art during her formative years, including the work of her father, prepared Ratajkowski for her nude and semi-nude appearances before the camera. Among her influences was exposure in books to the photography of Helmut Newton and Herb Ritts. Ratajkowski said she is comfortable with the naked body due to her background and life experiences, stating: "We have this culture of men, especially, watching pornography, but then [they are] offended by a classic nude portrait or photograph, and I've never felt that way".Ratajkowski also frequently visited nudist beaches in Europe with her family during her youth. As a young teen, who experienced early pronounced physical maturation, Ratajkowski endured pressure from friends, family, and society to suppress expressing her sexuality and how she presented herself.
Filmography
Film
Year Title Role Notes
2004 Andrew's Alteration Young Girl Short film
2005 A Year and a Day Girl
2014 Gone Girl Andie Fitzgerald
2015 Entourage Herself
2015 We Are Your Friends Sophie
Television
Year Title Role Notes
2009–2010 iCarly Tasha 2 episodes
2015 The Spoils Before Dying Main cast
Music videos
Year Title Artist
2012 "Fast Car" Taio Cruz
2013 "Blurred Lines" Robin Thicke ft. T.I. and Pharrell
2013 "Love Somebody" Maroon 5
Magazine cover history
Magazine Country Date Photographer Notes
treats! United States March 2012
GQ Turkey March 2013 Tony Kelly
CR Fashion Book unknown Fall/Winter 2013 Bruce Weber
S moda Spain March 1, 2014 Tetsu Kubota
GQ United States July 2014 Michael Thompson
Ocean Drive United States September 2014 Tony Duran
Cosmopolitan United States November 2014 Eric Ray Davidson
FHM United Kingdom February 2015 unknown
Cosmopolitan Italy June 2015 Eric Ray Davidson
Cosmopolitan Singapore June 2015 Eric Ray Davidson
Cosmopolitan South Africa July 2015 Eric Ray Davidson
Grazia Italy August 14, 2015 unknown
GQ United Kingdom September 2015 Mario Testino
Harper by Harper's Bazaar United States September 2015 Will Davidson
Editorialist United States Fall/Winter 2015 Derek Kettela
InStyle United Kingdom October 2015 Jenny Gage and Tom Betterton
InStyle Australia October 2015 Jenny Gage and Tom Betterton
Le Petit Voyeur unknown December 2015 Jonathan Leder
GQ Spain January 2016 Mario Testino
GQ Russia February 2016 Mario Testino
