Featured Image Credit: Instagram/emrata/celestebarber
Topics: Emily Ratajkowski, Australia, Social Media, Celebrity
Olivia Burke
Topics: Emily Ratajkowski, Australia, Social Media, Celebrity
They say that imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, but Emily Ratajkowski doesn't seem to think so.
The model and actress, 32, has made it clear that she isn't amused by comedian Celeste Barber recreating every photo she takes and uploads to social media.
Ratajkowski refuses to be the butt of the Australian's online jokes any longer and has blocked the stand-up star.
For those who aren't aware, Barber likes to poke fun at the rich and famous by mimicking their sultry poses in photoshoots and selfie sessions.
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The 42-year-old, who has also acquired an army of fans from her Netflix show Wellmania, routinely uploads tongue-in-cheek takes on celebrities Instagram snaps, but not everyone sees the funny side of it.
So far, she's targeted the likes of The Kardashians, Gwyneth Paltrow and Bella Hadid - but Ratajkowski wants her to draw a line under the copycat saga now.
In one post last year, Barber shared a screenshot of the model striking a seductive pose during a half-naked photoshoot and paired it with her own, somewhat less glamorous, recreation of it.
Sticking the knife in further, the comedian captioned the post: "We are sick of objectifying our bodies. Also, here's my a**."
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This awkwardly coincided with the release of Ratajkowski's book, My Body, which examined sexuality, female empowerment and some of the model's own personal experiences with objectification and abuse.
Discussing the internet beef on her podcast, High Low with EmRata, the model said the 'whole drama has been blown out of proportion' while explaining why she blocked the comedian.
She said: "This whole drama with Celeste has been blown out of proportion. In general, I find her to be really funny.
"But, [the] message I was trying to send to her was, ‘I just don’t want you to do this to me anymore’.
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“[I want] to be able to do my thing, whether that be writing about my terrifying experiences in an industry that doesn’t protect women and young girls and femme-presenting people, while also having a bathing suit line."
Ratajkowski revealed she thinks this particular vein of comedy is 'sexist' and emphasised that she did not give her consent to be made a mockery of.
Barber, on the other hand, insists the whole thing is just a laugh.
Discussing her rise to fame with Marie Claire last January, the comedian revealed what inspired her to start copying celebs and how she is 'really happy' that people find her content amusing.
Barber - who boasts a whopping 9.5 million Instagram followers - explained: "I like running my mouth off. I do it a lot. I'm quick-witted - it's one of my favourite things about me.
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"I don't like that I feel I can't do that as much, and yeah I do feel like I censor myself sometimes. But then other times I don't give a f**k and I operate from a place of already being cancelled.
"I mean good luck to them. You can't win," Barber said. "They hate what you do one day, then you're the greatest thing in the world the next day."
Although Ratajkowski isn't a fan of her recreation work, stars like Sharon Stone and Paltrow regularly comment on her cheeky posts and Barber says she now counts a few famous faces who she has imitated as her pals.