03 November 2023 , 12:55
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Model and TikToker Shereen Wu has accused American designer Michael Costello of allegedly replacing her face with another model's for his Instagram story, and then trying to blame it on the photographer after she called him out.
Shereen went viral when she claimed famed Project Runway star Michael Costello had replaced her face with a white model's in a photo he shared on his social media. In her TikTok post, Wu, an Asian-American, shared not only her outrage and disgust over the whole situation but also alleged that Costello had blamed the photo alteration on A.I.
Sharing a TikTok of her findings, Wu began by showing a photo of herself walking on the runway at Costello's show. She told her followers: "I recently walked for Michael Costello..." Then showing an image the designer had shared on Instagram featuring her body but with a different face, Wu continued: "... but that's not me who he posted on his story. Michael's a big designer with 1.7 million followers. Editing my face and removing my race is completely disrespectful."
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Wu went on to say that she contacted Costello to ask why her face had been removed, and he countered by telling her that she had been cast because he likes her. She then poured cold water on with by saying that she only reason she ended up walking for him was because a model was missing and she could fit into the dress.
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After pushing for answers, Wu shared screenshots of her alleged conversation with him about the situation in which he "essentially... blamed the photographer." The model claims she then spoke to the photographer, who confirmed he didn't edit the Instagram photo. He also claimed that Costello had started deleting messages between the two of them.
Wu went on to say that after sharing her story a model close to Michael offered to ask him what happened. She added: "The model tells him that Michael says it's fan art. Michael has told three different people three different stories. They remove my image without an apology, then post AI art, and then shared profiles of AI models as if to imply that everyone's doing this. So I shouldn't be angry or I am replaceable.
The model argued that by erasing her face, Costello is taking away her race and any future job opportunities. She told her followers: "I understand as a model, I am replaceable but I don't get paid to do these shows. While I don't get paid, there's a tacit understanding that I'm doing this for exposure and photographs. By not using my face, he's taking advantage of models without the same influence as he does."
This isn't the first time Michael Costello has been accused of racism. It is alleged that the designer called fellow creative Maxie James the N-word after she accused him of plagiarizing, and he has also been called out by singer Leona Lewis and Reality TV star Falynn Guobadia for allegedly body-shaming them.
The Mirror has contacted Shereen Wu and Micahel Costello for comment.