“Reacher” star Alan Ritchson has opened up about the distressing experiences he faced while working as a fashion model early in his career, including once being sexually assaulted at the hands of a “very famous photographer.”
Shortly after dropping out of college, Mr. Ritchson, then 19, signed a deal with modeling agency Next Management, soon garnering work with Abercrombie & Fitch, among other clothing brands. He also landed a job with department store JCPenney, regularly posing for the chain’s catalog shoots—a time Mr. Ritchson recalled as “one of the best chapters” of his life.
However, he told the publication that he was soon made privy to the dark underbelly of the modeling industry while working with a renowned photographer during a modeling shoot for an unnamed brand.
“I was sent into a hotel room to do nudes with the promise that if I did the shoot, he would offer me a very lucrative campaign for a magazine and a clothing line. I was sexually assaulted by this guy,” he openly shared.
The disturbing incident altered Mr. Ritchson’s career trajectory, leading him to leave the modeling industry for good.
“[I]t was the last photoshoot I’ve ever had,” he explained. “Those pictures were never seen or published. That was it. I swore it off and thank God acting found me at the exact same time so I was able to make a switch to a new career, but it left some scars.”
After a short stint on the singing competition television series “American Idol” in the early aughts, Mr. Ritchson later found his footing in Hollywood, going on to appear in several television shows, such as “CSI: Miami,” “Smallville,” “90210,” “Hawaii Five-0,” and “Titans,” as well as a slew of big-name films, including “The Hunger Games: Catching Fire” (2013), “The Wedding Ringer” (2015), and “Fast X” (2023).
More recently, he played widower Ed Schmitt in the faith-based film “Ordinary Angels,” starring opposite two-time Academy Award-winning actress Hilary Swank. The movie centers on the true story of Sharon Stevens, played by Ms. Swank, and her efforts to help Mr. Schmitt in his time of need.
“A lot of people run to easy ticket sales with, um, sexual content, and it’s kinda refreshing that, you know, we get a wholesome story that’s full of all the emotions that we hope for in a film,” he said.
The Dark Side of Modeling
Mr. Ritchson told The Hollywood Reporter that facing unwelcome sexual advances in his modeling days made him more empathetic about the struggles many women contend with daily.“I completely empathize with women who deal with dynamic power struggles with predatory people in the workplace,” he said.
“It’s still unfair, but if I really had to, I could get myself out of whatever room I was in through a physical altercation,” he added. “Most women don’t have that option. Imagine how terrifying it must be.”
Reflecting on his time spent working as a model, the “Ordinary Angels” star did not mince words about his feelings on the modeling business.
“There are very few redeeming qualities to working in that industry,” he declared, likening it to “legalized sex trafficking.”
“The industry is not regulated, and it’s a widely known secret that if you’re hired on a job, you’re basically being passed off to a photographer to be trafficked,” Mr. Ritchson said.
Mental Health Struggles
The former model has previously been forthcoming about the mental health struggles he has battled in his adulthood, including bipolar disorder and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, better known as ADHD, which the actor was diagnosed with at ages 36 and 40, respectively.Mr. Ritchson, who shares three sons with his wife, Catherine, has also been open about his bouts with depression, which culminated in an attempt to end his own life in 2019.
“My family was there for me, some doctors were there for me, and I got help and pulled through,” he told the publication. “But I had to find what meaning and purpose look like after that, and it looked like serving others and having a real relationship with God.”
