Vivian Wilson became the talk of Milan Fashion Week when she seductively walked the runway of Demna’s debut Gucci show in a floor-length white gown. The 21-year-old model said she was briefed by casting to embody Venus, the Roman goddess of love.

Her path to the Gucci runway began with a casting tape filmed in her own driveway. She walked "like a crazy person, like 8 million times" until she had the perfect take. The result? She ended up positioned in the lineup between icons Kate Moss and Mariacarla Boscono. "When I found that out, I was shaking in my boots," she told Chloe Malle, cozy in a Paris hotel room, while recording today’s episode of The Run Through. "We did it, though."

Before all the fashion week glamour in Paris and Milan, there was a very different life. Wilson spent time studying Japanese at a university in Tokyo, with plans to earn her TEFL certificate and become an ESL teacher. A Teen Vogue cover changed everything. "It completely transformed my career," she said. Now she's in Paris, doing the model thing — castings every hour, NDAs on NDAs — and entirely at peace with the pivot. "I wanna see how big I can get,” she said. “We're just locking the fuck in."

The conversation took a more serious turn when Malle raised the question of whether models look markedly thinner this season than even five years ago. Wilson didn't hesitate. "It's the Ozempic apocalypse, girl. I am so fucking over this."

Off the catwalk, she reads gay fantasy fiction and has a passion for Excel spreadsheets. She is trans, a John Oliver devotee, and has genuine ambitions in voice acting. Her three wishes are to appear in Vogue, attend the Met Gala, and walk for Schiaparelli. She left the hotel room with a piece of the chocolate Eiffel Tower, having resolved to break off a piece from the middle so as "not to compromise its structural integrity."

Also in the episode, Vogue editors share thoughts from the Balmain, Dries Van Noten and Saint Laurent shows at Paris Fashion Week.

The Run-Through with Vogue is your go-to podcast where fashion meets culture. Hosted by Chloe Malle, Head of Editorial Content, Vogue U.S.; Chioma Nnadi, Head of British Vogue; and Nicole Phelps, Director of Vogue Runway, each episode features the latest fashion news and exclusive designer and celebrity interviews.

Learn about your ad choices: dovetail.prx.org/ad-choices

Vivian Wilson on Walking Gucci and The “Ozempic Apocalypse” | PLUS The Devil Wears Dries

The Run-Through with Vogue