The mere mention of “The Swan” is enough to send chills down one’s spine. Created by former Telemundo exec Nely Galán, the Fox reality series selected 16 female contestants — from over 250,000 applicants — who were so-called “ugly ducklings” and subjected them to a 90-day ordeal of extreme plastic surgery, dentistry, training and crash dieting (with a little bit of therapy thrown in) to transform them into what its panel of “experts” deemed “attractive” before making them compete in “the ultimate beauty pageant,” where the women vied against one another for the ultimate prize of being crowned The Swan. In a review for Entertainment Weekly, Gillian Flynn, the future author of “Gone Girl,” called it “a foul blend of condescension and self-obsession” and “a misogynistic mix of TV’s twin vices: commercialism and conformity.” The show’s first season debuted in April 2004 and was a smash hit, attracting 9 million viewers across America.
But ratings plummeted in Season 2 amid heavy backlash to the show’s inherent ugliness, and it was canceled. Now, the new documentary “The Swan: Behind the Mirror” examines the notorious reality series and the carnival of horrors its participants endured. Directed by Erin Lee Carr (“I Love You, Now Die: The Commonwealth V.
Michelle Carter”) and premiering Sept. 29 on Hulu, the film tackles the show from all angles, including interviews with a dozen former contestants, show producers, trainers, cultural commentators and even one of its plastic surgeons, painting it as an enterprise that preyed on those with self-esteem issues in order to chase ratings. But things seemed off immediately following her surgeries. They came to call it “Pretty Prison.” “There were times that I would call on the radio and no one would answer, so you get stir-crazy,” Kristy remembers.
There was no seeing family or friends, contestants were forced to work out six days a week (sometimes twice a day) while recovering from myriad plastic surgeries and had to adhere to a strict diet of 800-1,200 calories a day, courtesy of Jenny Craig. If that weren’t enough, the beauty pageant element of the show wasn’t even revealed to contestants until after their surgeries were performed, while they were in recovery. Carl Buehl, a senior producer on the first season of “The Swan,” says this mandate came down from Fox executives to up the ante, posing the question, “Aren’t you tearing down everything we’ve done for them?” This curveball felt particularly manipulative to Kristy.
We were grossly mishandled and disrespected. You can’t invite somebody to play a game with you and then change the rules in the middle of the game. It was bullshit.” Season 2 was even more exploitive.
For its big twist, sisters Kari and Gina Bravata were pitted against each other as contestants — only Gina’s participation was kept secret from Kari. The siblings were given the code names “Mark” and “Greg” so as not to spoil the surprise, and if Gina happened to spill the beans her contract stipulated that she was liable for $5 million plus attorney’s fees. I’m still so bitter and so angry,” Kari attests.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
