Chrissy Teigen blasts fashion designer’s bullying accusations

Chrissy Teigen and John Legend have broken their silence over Michael Costello’s bullying accusations, claiming they are “completely fake”.

Chrissy Teigen says she’s “surprised” and “disappointed” by Michael Costello’s bullying accusations against her, saying the alleged DMs he posted between the pair are “fictional”.

“No idea what the f**k Michael Costello is doing,” she wrote alongside a lengthy statement on Friday afternoon. “He just released a statement where he didn’t at ALL acknowledge how fake the DMs were, and now claims to have emails that don’t exist. So while he conjures those up (hopefully with someone more talented in fakes this time), here …”

Teigen released a statement calling Costello’s accusations fictional. Picture: Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for Global Citizen Vax Live

RELATED: Claims Mischa was a nightmare on set

The statement, which is titled “on behalf of Chrissy Teigen”, explains she had a “cordial relationship” with the designer based on “friendly online interactions,” and so was flabbergasted when he accused her of bullying so severe it left him suicidal.

“When the supposed screenshots from 2014 were originally circulated last week,” it continues, “the name on Chrissy’s account was misspelled.” The statement also points out alleged inconsistencies regarding an old profile photo and the video chat function.

Costello claimed Chrissy blacklisted him from the fashion industry. Picture: Albert L. Ortega/Getty Images

RELATED: Teigen’s bold move to fix her image

“Chrissy has every right to correct the record and defend her name,” the missive ended. “She is not interested in making Mr Costello the target of harassment or abuse from anyone claiming to support her. She hopes this can be a time of honest reflection and healing.”

Earlier this week, Costello claimed a misunderstanding with Teigen, 35, led to him allegedly being blacklisted in the fashion industry, leaving him suicidal.

“For the past seven years, I’ve lived with a deep, unhealed trauma,” he wrote on Instagram.

Project Runway contestant Costello, 38, alleged that in 2014, Teigen “apparently formed her own opinion of me based on a photoshopped comment floating around the internet which has now been proven to be false by Instagram and since taken down”.

He said he attempted to explain the mix-up – which apparently made it seem as if he’d used a racial slur – to Teigen, who he claims “told me that my career was over and that all my doors will be shut from there on”.

Chrissy Teigen and John Legend have both responded to Costello’s claims online. Picture Instagram @chrissyteigen

Costello posted screengrabs purportedly showing a direct message thread with Teigen in which she claimed: “Racist people like you deserve to suffer and die. You might as well be dead. Your career is over, just watch.”

“I didn’t see the point of living,” Costello wrote. “There was no way I can ever escape from being the target of the powerful elites in Hollywood.”

“I am not OK,” he continued. “I may never be OK, but today, I am choosing to speak my truth.”

On Friday, Teigen’s husband John Legend tweeted support for his wife while also calling out Costello.

Chrissy has previously apologised for historical cyber-bullying. Picture: Emma McIntyre/Getty Images for The Recording Academy

“Chrissy apologised for her public tweets, but after her apology, Mr Costello fabricated a DM exchange between them. This exchange was made up, completely fake, never happened,” Legend, 42, tweeted.

The singer, who has been married to Teigen since 2013, added: “Honestly I don’t know why anyone would fake DMs to insert themselves in this narrative, but that’s what happened. I encourage everyone who breathlessly spread this lie to keep that same energy when they correct the record.”

Costello’s team, meanwhile, released a statement of their own on Friday: “The fact that Chrissy Teigen’s team is desperately trying to prove the DM’s are fake and [attempting] to discredit Michael Costello, a victim of trauma and bullying by Chrissy Teigen both online and offline, confirms that she remains the same bully, despite her public apology.”

Last month, the model was engulfed in a bullying scandal when her old tweets resurfaced online. In one 2011 tweet, she told Courtney Stodden to “take a dirt nap” for which she has since said sorry.

She penned multiple apologies, the second of which she used to call herself “insecure” and “immature”.

“Not a day, not a single moment, has passed where I haven’t felt the crushing weight of regret for the things I’ve said in the past,” she wrote, adding, “I thought it made me cool and relatable if I poked fun at celebrities.”

This article originally appeared on Page Six and was reproduced with permission