The Beautiful Life Returns

Remember when models ruled the world in the 90s with Naomi, Linda, Christy and Cindy? Yep who can forget when that gorgeous quartet rocked the runway at the Versace show to George Michael's Freedom. That was a moment etched in pop culture history with fashion meshing with music. During that decade everyone became obessed with models and not a magazine went by without a model appearing on the cover. The term supermodel was born and granted to a select few and they became very famous and rich. Following the media and public's appetite for tall and skinny creatures a show was created that showed the fabulous life of a model. Enter Models Inc which was launched in 1994 and starred Linda Gray from Dallas and Carrie-Ann Moss who go on and kick ass in The Matrix. The show was not a huge  success and ran for one season.

The Beautiful Life  is the baby of Ashton Kutcher (he is the executive producer)  and it made it's debut this season on CWTV with Mischa Barton as top billing. However the show was axed after only two episodes and I was devastated as I was really getting into it. It seemed that although we love shows about models in reality shows such as America's Next Top Model, fiction shows about them are not as well received. Today I  logged onto Perez Hilton and found out that The Beautiful Life is being relaunched by Ashton Kutcher on YouTube. That's right, all five episodes will be available to watch online. The objective is to prove that an online show can get more viewers than one that is aired on TV. If the shows turn out to be a hit then this will give Ashton the green light to make more episodes specifically for the web. How exciting! I love to seeing people taking life by the hands and really going for things they believe in.

Let me give you a bit of background on The Beautiful Life aka TBL. Forget Mischa, TBL is actually about Chris Mathews played by Benjamin Hollingsworth, a small town boy from Iowa who falls into modelling as a way to make some extra cash for his struggling family. He moves into a model house in Manhattan where he meets Raina Mayer played by Sara Paxton, an up and coming model who I guess is like a new Christy Turlington. How can I describe Raina? Well she is gorgeous, kind, gutsy and humble; kind of like Mother Theresa in stilettos. The two teenagers are instantly attracted to each other but as you would have it work keeps getting in the way. There is also a small matter of a huge family secret that Raina is carrying. Other characters are Sonja Stone played by Mischa Barton who is making a comeback to modelling after an unexplained six month hiatus. Marissa Delfina played by Ashley Madekwe, a Brit chick who will stop at nothing to get to the top and that includes knocking Sonja off her perche. Cole Shephard played by Nico Tortorella is a seasoned model who holds a torch for Raina. Issac Taylor played by Corbin Bleu plans to replace modelling with a career in music but finds himself in a dangerous relationship with cougar, Vivienne played by Jaime Murray who is interested in more than his modelling abililites. Then there is former supermodel, Claudia Foster played by Elle McPherson who owns the modelling agency they work for and determined to make it a success no matter what. The Beautiful Life is a rather voyeristic look into the crazy and ultra competitive life of the modeling world.


Read my preview of The Beautiful Life here.


You can watch the full pilot of the show above and you can catch all the rest of episodes right here.

The Beautiful Life

I was delighted to get home and see one of my favourite magazines, asos on the doormat. On the cover is Mischa Barton looking kind of kooky wearing a boho suit with a top hat. The look which is a far cry from her sophisticated one, works very well. In the interview she talks about her style influences, British fashion and her new bag collection which is sold on asos. Mischa also fills us in on her new show, The Beautiful Life in which she plays a character far removed from Marissa Cooper. She makes her return to the small screen in the shape of Sonia, a catty and neurotic model who will stop at nothing to keep her place at the top. Produced by twitter fan, Ashton Kutcher this glossy drama is about a group of male and female models sharing a home in New York and shows the cut throat world of modelling. According to Mischa, The Beautiful Life is based on Ashton's experience as a model before he went on to become a successful actor as well as Mr Demi Moore. With a stellar 'model' cast which includes Elle Macpherson, Corbin Bie, (a former model and actor from High School Musical) as well as Mischa who has done a spot of modelling; the show may lack originality but few will doubt it's credibility. The trailer looks amazing; I was hooked from the word go and my first impression was how sharp it looked. I am totally ecstatic to see Mischa playing a character with a lot more bite and backbone than the emaciated Marissa who face it was the eternal victim. The show strikes me as a fiction version of America's Next Top Model or Make Me a Supermodel. Check out the trailer above and tell me what you think.

The Beautiful Life airs on The CW Television this autumn. Also check out Mischa's cool website where she spills the beans on the entertainment industry and her new handbag line.