Amber Valletta: The Enduring Legacy of a 1990s Supermodel
Amber Valletta, the iconic 1990s supermodel who graced the cover of Vogue multiple times, continues to captivate audiences with her timeless beauty and multifaceted career. Standing at 5ft10in, the catwalk veteran worked with prestigious fashion houses including Calvin Klein, Fendi, and Versace, establishing herself as a blonde bombshell and muse for the industry.
Transition to Acting and Notable Roles
The photogenic model successfully transitioned to acting, with her first major film role as a poltergeist in Robert Zemeckis' supernatural thriller What Lies Beneath in 2000, starring alongside Harrison Ford and Michelle Pfeiffer. Her filmography expanded with appearances in Hitch (2005), Transporter 2 (2005), Man About Town (2006), Dead Silence (2007), Gamer (2009), and The Spy Next Door (2010).
On television, Valletta landed a recurring role as the fallen socialite Lydia Davis on ABC's drama series Revenge in 2011. In 2015, she starred as the scheming Carla Briggs in another ABC soap opera, Blood & Oil. Her most recent project was the 2021 film Jungle Red with Stella Maxwell.
Recent Public Appearance and Sobriety Journey
On Wednesday evening, the star looked youthful in pale pink as she attended the annual An Unforgettable Evening fundraiser gala benefiting the Women's Cancer Research Fund at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel in Beverly Hills. The event also featured celebrities such as Jennifer Lopez and Sofia Vergara, with Valletta showcasing her remarkable appearance at age 52.
In 2020, Valletta celebrated 25 years of sobriety, openly discussing her past addiction to drugs and alcohol. In an interview with NET-A-PORTER's digital title, Porter, she credited ending her substance abuse with saving her life. She candidly stated, 'Left to my own devices, I guarantee you no matter how much I love life, my family, if I take a drink or any of my drugs of choice, I'll be dead. I'll ruin everything.'
The former face of Giorgio Armani first opened up about her dependency issues in July 2014, revealing she was introduced to drugs at age 10 and started using cocaine at 18. She expressed pride in being clean, noting, 'I didn't have a problem when I was out using, if you saw me high or drunk. So why would I be ashamed of being clean and saying, 'I have a disease that I can't control'? Only by being sober do I have any chance of survival.'
Supermodel Rise and Industry Reflections
Valletta rose to prominence in the 1990s, gracing 16 American Vogue covers, serving as an ambassador for Versace, and securing multi-million dollar contracts with Calvin Klein and Elizabeth Arden. Reflecting on the era's camaraderie with models like Kate Moss and Shalom Harlow, she recalled, 'Nobody was thinking about whether we were making a statement. You'd fight with each other, cry with each other, support each other, lose jobs to each other, all of it.'
She highlighted differences in today's fashion industry, expressing discomfort with the 'selfie' era. Amber explained, 'You would never have taken your Polaroid camera and turned it around on yourself. You would never have talked about how you were flying around in a private jet. That's why when Linda [Evangelista] made that one statement ['I never get out of bed for less than $10,000 a day'], it was huge. People talk like that all the time on Instagram now. People who don't even do anything!'
Personal Growth and Climate Activism
On her early career beginnings, Valletta admitted feeling 'disconnected' from the world after starting modeling at age 15. She shared, 'I started feeling a big disconnect. I couldn't quite work out what it was. I vacillated from being melancholy to being overwhelmed with anxiety to partying.' Now, she aims to live authentically, stating, 'I want to be the person that I aspire to be. I don't want to talk it, I want to live it. I want to allow myself the space to have bad days, be sad, be mad, be loving and accepting of others.'
Since her time in the spotlight, Valletta has become an activist, serving as the spokesperson for Oceana's Seafood Contamination Campaign. In November, she was arrested by Capitol police and charged with blocking traffic while demonstrating alongside Jane Fonda during a weekly climate change protest in Washington, DC.
Sticking by her actions, she explained, 'I chose to get arrested. I've been feeling this need to get loud, to step into my own. I don't care what anyone thinks. I can't sit on the sidelines, I need to physically put myself on the line. I chose to get arrested as a symbol. My life is worth putting out there, in order to show that all our lives are worth fighting for.'
On prioritizing her beliefs, the mother of one son, Auden, 25, elaborated, 'I believe in this. I will risk public opinion, being in jail. It was profound. This is the most important crisis we're facing. I'm not diminishing cancer or Aids, diabetes or addiction, but there won't be anything left to fight for. Nothing else matters.' She added that she 'wants to cry' whenever she thinks about climate change and the future of the planet, particularly for future generations.
