Age 32 feels too early for retirement in most professions. But in 2005, that was the age Victoria's Secret Fashion Show model Tyra Banks took off her Angel wings for good. She was shifting her focus to her burgeoning TV career, she said. Had she not also been one of the oldest models in the runway cast at the time, new priorities could have read as the only reason for her departure.
But we know what went on behind-the-scenes at the lingerie behemoth in the early 2000s by now, and what forces could imply that 32 was, somehow, getting too "old" for the runway. Before Victoria's Secret canceled its annual fashion show in 2019—an extravaganza known for over-the-top set dressings and outfits so skimpy, they hardly counted as lingerie— "sexy" had narrow definition and an expiration date. (At least in terms of who could model; the brand doesn't discriminate regarding its shoppers' ages.) The runway's casting glorified youth and thinness, sometimes at the expense of the models' physical and mental health; many of the breakout models were only 18 in their first shows. Every leg was toned and every stomach was flat—this was not a place for curves. So a woman in her 40s or 50s, with visible stretch marks and wrinkles walking alongside them? No one could conceive of it at the height of the brand's powers.
But that was then. On Oct. 15, the 2024 Victoria's Secret Fashion Show returned with a promise that the brand had changed, and so had its faces. The breakout stars? The first curve models (like Ashley Graham, Devyn Garcia, and Paloma Elsesser), trans models (like Valentina Sampaio), and models in their 40s and 50s to walk its runway. Plus, a reunion of stars from the brand's earlier class who looked more confident than ever in middle age.
Designers around the fashion world have been casting middle-age models in their shows for years, albeit occasionally: Just look at Batsheva Hay, whose Fall 2024 runway was populated by women over 40, or the entire roster at Copenhagen Fashion Week, where women with graying hair and un-Botoxed skin are the norm. Still, for a brand with Victoria's Secret's history, a runway where 15 percent of models are over the age of 40 looks like progress.
In silver bleachers lit pink at Brooklyn Navy Yard stage, the biggest cheers from the stands came when returning faces like Alessandra Ambrosio (41), Adriana Lima (43), Isabeli Fontana (41), and Eva Herzigová (51) strutted down the runway. They were still given all the license to embrace their sensuality, too, in lacy push-up bras and entirely sheer lace dresses.
These women are obviously not representative of the average woman in her 40s or 50s; by virtue of all the modeling checks they've collected over the years, they have access to treatments, products, and trainers mere mortals do not. In the aggregate, they were all straight- or mid-size. Imperfect though it was, their representation still made a long-overdue point: that a desire to feel desired, or sexy for yourself, doesn't end at age 25 or 30.
Some of the best Victoria's Secret Fashion Show moments came from the rookie class of Angels—who were in their 50s. Kate Moss and her daughter, Lila, both walked the runway for the first time in last night's show: Kate in black lace and tulle wings, Lila in a shiny, baby-pink set. She wasn't the only '90s supermodel getting her overdue wings last night: Carla Bruni also made her debut, in a black corset lined with glitter and a pair of fringe wings.
In an interview with Page Six, the former First Lady of France joked about sharing a stage with the likes of Bella Hadid. "At my age?!" she said. "It’s very exciting and it’s very overwhelming, really. Because, you know, no one gets used to being on a runway no matter how long [they’ve been doing it]."
Then, to close the show, Tyra Banks made her long-awaited return. She traded the 30-pound wings for a cape reminiscent of a monarch butterfly (but pink) and the glittery thongs of yesteryear for an equally sparkly pair of leggings, as pink confetti rained from the ceiling. Her yassified athleisure was listed in a livestream shopping component of the fashion show's broadcast—and it sold out.
Clearly, the Victoria's Secret version of sexy still sells. But in its six years off, the brand seems to have learned what its shoppers knew all along: Sexy doesn't have an age limit. Now, if there's a next time, let's aim higher than 15 percent.
