“What in the heck are you girls doing?”
His eyes were round, his mouth twisted and disconcerted.
Marlow sat next to me. She said nothing for a while as the three of us breathed in and out. She finally turned to me, her eyebrows in an earnest, questioning furrow.
“What was it like? What does it feel like when you’re drowning?”
CHAPTER 18
THE INTERVIEW
2021
[Studio]
MARLOW FIN: I’ve never strangled anyone in my life.
JODI LEE: There are rumors that you had an altercation at the wedding with your mother, Stella. There are eyewitnesses stating you lunged at her. And that your hands were around her throat.
MARLOW FIN: Lies. [Shakes head]
JODI LEE: So, you did not touch her at all?
MARLOW FIN: She had it out for me. Let’s just say that. She had it out for me for the longest time and she finally got her way.
JODI LEE: There was an altercation with your mother? You are acknowledging that?
MARLOW FIN: Yes. And that is as far as I will go. But I did not strangle her.
[Roll package, photos of wedding]
JODI LEE: On September 15, 2012, photographers captured Marlow lunging at her mother. Tabloids called it “Mad Marlow and Mom.” Her reps would later deny anything other than a “family argument that got too heated.” Stella Baek never publicly commented on the incident. But what caused such a heated interaction between the two?
JODI LEE: Are you on good terms with your mother today?
MARLOW FIN: No. That would be a solid no. Especially after what happened.
JODI LEE: After what happened . . . you mean what you have been accused of? Or the wedding?
MARLOW FIN: Everything.
JODI LEE: Has she spoken to you? Reached out to you?
MARLOW FIN: [Laughs] If Stella Baek tells you she wants to talk to me, you can tell her she can come straight to me. That would be the day too.
No, she hasn’t reached out. We don’t speak.
JODI LEE: That’s a sad thing. A mother and daughter who don’t speak. I have a daughter myself and I can’t imagine. Do you miss her? Are there days when you wish you were on good terms?
MARLOW FIN: I am happy for you and your daughter. And for any mother and daughter out there who have a great relationship. But that was never in the cards for me and Stella.
JODI LEE: You refer to her as Stella a lot.
MARLOW FIN: I do.
JODI LEE: I sense some agitation, so I’ll move on, Marlow. [Smiles] There’s a story that has been floating around the industry for a while now. This story is about how your big break in modeling was in large part due to your sister, Isla.
MARLOW FIN: Are you talking about the art project?
JODI LEE: The photo was taken in 2004. You were sixteen years old. And the person who took that photo was your sister, Isla.
MARLOW FIN: It was her final for an art class. That’s one of my favorite photos to this day.
JODI LEE: Do you know what happened to that photo?
MARLOW FIN: No. But I would love to.
JODI LEE: Apparently, that photo taken of you in this composition is worth a lot. Sotheby’s recently valued it at $1.6 million.
MARLOW FIN: [Shakes head] I’ve been around the world and met a lot of eccentric people. But it still surprises me how much people will pay for something. I hope I always remain surprised by that.
[Roll package, early modeling shots]
JODI LEE: Surprising as it was to her, the photo auctioned a week after our interview for over $2 million. Just why is this photo so famous?
Taken by her sister Isla in 2004 with a Nikon F-401, little did either of them know that it would launch the career of one of the most successful models in history. Isla presented the photo alongside a local news clipping about Marlow’s rescue in 1995 as her senior art project. The black-and-white photo depicted Marlow staring straight into the camera, with her hand spread across her face.
Now here is the part that some may call fate . . . fortune.
