Supermodels involved in promoting the failed Fyre Festival, including Kendall Jenner, Bella Hadid, Emily Ratajkowski, and Hailey Bieber, may soon face subpoenas over the payments they received, according to a new court filing.
On Jan. 28, a New York judge granted an ex-parte order on request by Fyre Festival trustee Gregory Messner to issue subpoenas to the models who received payments from businessman and festival organizer Billy McFarland. McFarland is currently serving six years in prison on various counts of fraud for raising an estimated $26 million through investors for the failed 2017 music festival, according to the Daily Mail.
McFarland allegedly paid $5.3 million for various talent and modeling agencies to use their influence to help promote the Fyre Festival on social media as well as appear in a now-viral promo video.
The subpoenas issued against the supermodels are part of a larger effort to understand what happened to the $5.3 million, according to Billboard.
Messner is also looking into what he claims was a $250,000 payment made to Jenner for her Instagram post about the festival. In the since-deleted post, Jenner suggested that members of the G.O.O.D. Music record, founded by Kanye West, would be headlining the festival. Jenner later received a warning from the Federal Trade Commission for failing to disclose that her post was sponsored, reported Billboard.
IMG Models, which represents numerous models who promoted the failed festival, including Hadid, Bieber, and Victoria’s Secret Angel Elsa Hosk, is among the list of organizations that will receive subpoenas. Messner said IMG received payments of $1.2 million from McFarland between November 2016 and February 2017.
DNA Model Management, which represents Ratajkowski, and Jerry Media, an agency responsible for the social media promotion of the festival, will also be issued subpoenas. Jerry Media has been criticized for hyping the event despite multiple warning signs that the festival would not meet expectations.
View this post on InstagramThe new trendycolour to wear @boloneyewear ???? shot by @marianovivanco ❤️ #MyStyleMyBolon#BL6057
The Fyre Festival gained viral attention in 2017 when festival-goers, who had paid between $1,000 and $12,000 for a ticket, flocked to an island in the Bahamas under the promise of musical guests, luxury living conditions, private yachts, and gourmet food. However, they found little by way of entertainment in the Exuma islands that had reputedly been owned by Colombian cocaine lord Pablo Escobar, according to The Guardian. Instead, they were greeted with hurricane-relief tents, limited food, no bathrooms, and almost no way off the island.
View this post on Instagram
Interest in the alleged fraud case has been renewed since two documentary films, “Fyre Fraud” on Hulu and “Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened” recently came out on Netflix.
Hadid previously apologized on her Twitter for her role in promoting the festival.
“Even though this was not my project what so ever, nor was I informed about the production or process of the festival in any shape or form, I do know that it has always been out of great intent and they truly wanted all of us to have the time of our lives,” she wrote in a since-deleted post.
“I initially trusted this would be an amazing & memorable experience for all of us, which is why I agreed to do one promotion … not knowing about the disaster that was to come … I feel so sorry and badly because this is something I couldn’t stand by, although of course if I would have known about the outcome, you would have all known too.”
View this post on InstagramNew @diormakeup Rouge Dior Xmas.. Coming soon by @peterphilipsmakeup????????
