"The stereotypical dumb blond doesn’t interest me" - When Justin Verlander's wife Kate Upton reflected on overcoming Hollywood typecasting

Justin Verlander's wife Kate Upton's successful modeling career led her to the doorsteps of Hollywood. However, the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit cover model wasn't content with being typecast as just another blonde bombshell.

As with the cases of many models, Hollywood allegedly has rendered many to just glamorous roles. This is why the model-turned-actress once made it clear that she wants more than just eye-candy roles in Hollywood.

Upton played the role of the perky mistress in The Other Woman (2014) and the flirty, conniving character in The Layover (2017). During an interview with Editorial List in April 2024, Upton said such roles didn’t fully reflect her ambitions as an actress.

"The stereotypical dumb blond doesn’t interest me," she said. "I want a full arc and full story."

Upton further delved into the many projects that she now thinks weren't right for her.

“My relationship with fame hasn’t always been an easy road,” Upton added. “[I had] lots of moments where I’m like, ‘What was I thinking? Why did I do that?’ A lot of projects that I really am not proud of, or just are stupid, I had a gut feeling about.

"And I was either talked into it by an agent or I didn’t want to trust my instinct because I told myself I didn’t know enough about the subject.”

Upton doesn't reveal which project she was talking about.

Justin Verlander's wife Kate Upton spoke about the harassment she faced when she was 18 from Guess co-founder

Kate Upton’s early career was marred by personal struggles behind the scenes. In 2018, she bravely spoke out against the sexual harassment she endured as an 18-year-old during her time with Guess. She leveled allegations against Guess co-founder Paul Marciano. However, the accused denied all the allegations.

During the same interaction, Upton reflected upon the incident and urged women to not fall for such things and that they can be successful without suffering from something similar.

"I wanted to share my story to show young women that’s not normal," Upton said. "That treatment shouldn’t happen, and you can still find success and not be put in that position."

Upton has embraced new verticals apart from Hollywood and the glamour world. She has become an entrepreneur, wife to MLB star Justin Verlander and mother to Genevieve.