Emily Ratajkowski’s ‘So-Called Sex Symbol’ Quote Goes Viral Next to Her Thong Photos

By Nico Grey · Published Nov 5, 2026, 9:12 AM (BKK)

“I’ve felt objectified and limited by my position in the world as a so-called sex symbol.” Emily Ratajkowski wrote that in her 2021 book My Body. On Nov. 4 an X account posted it again with two words underneath, “How she dresses,” and two of her sexiest photos. It passed 1 million views in a day.

I’m Nico Grey. I run NicoGrey.com and Scandal Planet, and I’ve spent 25 years behind the camera watching women build careers on exactly this kind of image. So I’ll say what the replies won’t: you can love being looked at and still hate who gets to decide what it means. Both things are true on my sets every week.

Below: the post, the full quote and what comes right before it, what she wrote about Blurred Lines, the two sides of the reply war, and what’s confirmed.

The post everyone is quoting

The account @itstoz posted it on Nov. 4: the quote, then “How she dresses:” and two photos. One is a selfie in a red halter top cut almost to the navel; the other shows her walking down a street in a black crop top and a black string thong bikini, sneakers and a denim jacket over her arm. By the morning of Nov. 5, Bangkok time, it had about 1.04 million views, 11,000 likes and nearly 300 replies (X). The post doesn’t say when or where either photo was taken.

The full quote, and the half nobody posts

The line is from the introduction to My Body, which she excerpted in British Vogue in November 2021. Right before it she wrote: “In many ways, I have been undeniably rewarded by capitalising on my sexuality. I became internationally recognisable, amassed an audience of millions, and have made more money through endorsements and fashion campaigns than my parents … ever dreamed of earning in their lifetimes.”

Then: “But in other, less overt ways, I’ve felt objectified and limited by my position in the world as a so-called sex symbol. I’ve capitalised on my body within the confines of a cis-hetero, capitalist, patriarchal world, one in which beauty and sex appeal are valued solely through the satisfaction of the male gaze.” Her conclusion: her position “brought me some autonomy, but it hasn’t resulted in true empowerment.” (British Vogue; Goodreads)

What she wrote about Blurred Lines

The book is also where she went back to the 2013 Robin Thicke video that made her famous, per Kirkus Reviews. “I didn’t have any real power as the naked girl dancing around in his music video. I was nothing more than a hired mannequin,” she wrote, per 7NEWS, which also quotes her saying her fame “came at a price.”

Both sides of the reply war

This argument is older than the post. When the book came out, The Times review said she refuses to follow her own line of thought further, to ask “whether she is guilty of perpetuating a misogynistic culture by pandering so perfectly to the male gaze” (The Times). Kirkus took the other side and called the book “surprisingly engaging,” a “coming-of-age-in-the-industry tale” (Kirkus). The X replies split the same way: hypocrisy on one side, “she can wear what she wants” on the other.

Confirmed vs. my opinion

Confirmed: the quote is real and from My Body (2021), with the lines before and after it as printed in British Vogue; the Blurred Lines lines (7NEWS, Kirkus); the Times and Kirkus reviews; the @itstoz post and its numbers.

Not confirmed: when and where the two photos in the post were taken. We found no response from Emily to the post.

My read (opinion): that posting a bikini photo doesn’t contradict what she wrote.

FAQ

Where is Emily Ratajkowski’s ‘so-called sex symbol’ quote from?

From the introduction to her 2021 essay collection My Body, which she excerpted in British Vogue in November 2021: “I’ve felt objectified and limited by my position in the world as a so-called sex symbol.”

Why is the quote viral again?

On Nov. 4, 2026 the X account @itstoz posted it with “How she dresses:” and two photos of her in a plunging red top and a black thong bikini. It passed about 1.04 million views in a day.

What did Emily Ratajkowski say about Blurred Lines?

In My Body she wrote: “I didn’t have any real power as the naked girl dancing around in his music video. I was nothing more than a hired mannequin.”

Where can I watch Emily Ratajkowski’s best scenes?

Her Scandal Planet hub has Gone Girl, the unrated Blurred Lines video, Welcome Home, Lying and Stealing and more.

— Nico. She wrote the book and kept the bikini. Her scenes are on her hub.

Fact-check: Scandal Planet Desk

What do you think? Does posting a thong photo contradict what Emily wrote? Tell us on X @celeb124.

Photos: images already on Emily Ratajkowski’s Scandal Planet hub, not the two photos in the X post. The X post is shown as an embed.

Sources

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