Another fashion month has come to an end, and its final days were not without some surprises: Hedi Slimane’s departure from Celine and a brand new rookie model on the block.
The last known name was Sunday Rose Kidman Urban, the 16-year-old daughter of Nicole Kidman and Keith Urban, who attended the Miu Miu fashion show at Paris Fashion Week on Tuesday.
Yes, it seems like five minutes ago we were discussing the couple choosing the name “Sunday” for the baby, but here she is, as tall as her mother and equally capable of making anything she wear look beautiful.
The young girl’s first modeling experience was a star turn in a show full of star turns, where she shared the catwalk with Alexa Chung, Willem Dafoe, Hillary Swank and Cara Delevingne. She also attended a celebrity-filled post-show dinner and sat front row at Balenciaga with her mother. She may be a “nepo baby” (Gen Z speak for someone whose career benefits from her famous parents’ connections), but even the most dismissive critic has to admit she has something about her that makes her stand out.
And that’s what makes Sunday Rose a hot presence as a model, with or without her famous surname: people are interested in her, which means brands will be willing to pay for the chance to share that interest.
Sunday Rose seems ready for this, too. In June, he attended his first fashion show as a guest (Balenciaga couture in Paris, no big deal). In a conversation with Victoria Beckham published this summer Vogue AustraliaKidman finally explained why she agreed to let Sunday join her. “He’s about to turn 16. That’s what I told him, he was allowed to come to a show when he was 16. He wanted to go for a long time. This was his introduction to this… It’s a push-pull. I don’t want to hold him back because I don’t want to spoil him.
Kidman and Urban won’t be alone in trying to strike a balance between keeping their kids grounded and letting them follow their dreams, but there’s a set path for children of celebrities to “exit” into public life, and fashion is often the way to do that. vehicle.
It starts with the kind of debut most models can only dream of; Miu Miu catwalk show is one of them. Miuccia Prada is in fine form when it comes to casting for the next big thing; Daria Werbowy, Karolína Kurková, Lindsey Wixson and Arizona Muse all started as Prada’s “specials,” meaning they were contractually obligated not to attend any other shows that season. This is a great privilege for a young model and is seen as an indication that they are moving towards a different level of success.
Receiving the Sunday Rose is also a success for Miu Miu, says Sara McCorquodale, CEO and founder of influencer intelligence and digital trends platform CORQ: “It hasn’t received a lot of media coverage, which creates additional excitement about the programme. It’s an unexpected story that suddenly makes a niche event relevant to a mass audience.
Part of the appeal is that we don’t know much about Sunday Rose. The other advantage is that her parents’ wealth and connections gave her the luxury of being able to slowly and carefully develop her modeling career with the best management team and agents around her. There will be no e-commerce modeling shoots for Sunday Rose to pay the bills.
“Introducing her in this luxury context speaks volumes about her intention for her personal brand,” says McCorquodale. “I think we can expect a very well-chosen career and trajectory. We won’t get ‘warts and all’ social content from him for 24 hours; It is positioned as a special kind of talent for the premium market.
We’ve seen this strategy implemented in the careers of other nepo baby models as well. Take Kaia Gerber, the 23-year-old daughter of Cindy Crawford and one of the most successful models today. At 15, she signed a contract with mega-agency IMG, and at 16, she made her catwalk debut for Calvin Klein, while Raf Simons was artistic director.
Lily Rose Depp is another example: her mother, Vanessa Paradis, was a long-time muse of Karl Lagerfeld, and the late designer appointed Lily Rose as a Chanel brand ambassador after she turned 16.
That’s just the tip of the iceberg: Hadid sisters Gigi and Bella (daughters of Real Housewife Yolanda Hadid and real estate investor Mohamed Hadid), Kendall Jenner (Kris and Caitlyn’s daughter, half-sister of the Kardashians), Lila Moss (Kate’s ‘s daughter), Hailey Bieber (née Baldwin), Iris Law (Jude’s daughter), Deva Cassel (Monica Bellucci and Vincent Cassel’s daughter) and Lennon Gallagher (Liam and Patsy Kensit’s son). Celebrity parents really help if you want to be a successful model.
These children of celebrities become instant influencers, first appearing in paparazzi photos or on social media feeds with their parents, then gaining their own followers simply because they’re curious about the celebrities’ lives next door. Brands want to get a piece of the opportunity: “Clicks are the new advertising. Nepo dolls drive huge amounts of online traffic and engagement, no matter how tall they are or how well they can walk,” former casting director James Scully told the New York Times.
McCorquodale says there’s more depth than that. “As a society, we are intrigued by nepo dolls because they represent the next chapter in a culturally relevant story. They trigger feelings of nostalgia and youth, and live unique lives as children of icons. They also provide common ground between generations; Gen Suddenly they are united by understanding two halves of a story. In this age of influencers where anyone can theoretically achieve fame, nepo dolls also bring untold depth and legacy to the table.”
So it was a genius idea to bring cousins Molly Moorish-Gallagher, Lennon Gallagher, Anaïs Gallagher and Gene Gallagher together in the front row of the Burberry show last month – shortly after the Oasis reunion was announced. “The brand appeared to proudly reference its cultural connection to the Britpop era,” says McCorquodale. “For many, this was a bit of a bright era, and the suggestion that we are entering a new era has positive, optimistic connotations.”
Sunday Rose, on the other hand, seems like a down-to-earth young woman. In an Instagram Reel VogueHe comes across as charming, with many viewers noting his “cute” accent — a mix of South America (the family lives in Nashville, Tennessee) and Australia, where both his parents grew up.
“I’ve wanted to do this for so long, so when the offer came it was really exciting,” he says in the clip. “And now that day has finally come. “I was really stressed, but everyone here is really nice.”
If he can maintain this excitement and professionalism he can go far.