When Emily Ratajkowski shared a beach snap of her and her friend Caitlin King on Instagram three days ago, she wasn’t prepared for the row that followed. 

Within minutes of posting the image, the Gone Girl actor was bombarded by accusations that she was body-shaming King because of their different figures. 

“I’m sorry but all women compare themselves to some standard in our culture,” read one in a string of similar comments. “You surely knew this would evoke anger unless you’re living under a rock.”

“She knew exactly what she was doing when she posted this photo,” another typical response says. “She has the better body, she knows she does (but pretends she doesn’t) and she’s happy about that.”

Ratajkowski, who refers to her Instagram feed as a “feminist magazine”, was quick to intervene. 

“I love my friends body and both her and I think she looks great here!” she wrote in the comments section.

The friends are both wearing Ratajkowski’s swimwear line, Inamorata, in the photo. 

Ratajkowski, who is also a supermodel, continues: “I’m proud she [King] is rocking my suits”. 

“All these haters are crazy,” she adds. “Just because you’re used to seeing one body type on the internet doesn’t mean that that’s the only kind that should be considered ‘beautiful’”.

Ratajkowski’s comeback was echoed by some of her 22 million followers, too. 

“I don’t understand why a larger body is so offensive to people,” said one, as another added: “It’s time for us to STOP comparing women’s bodies”. 

King also commented on the absurdity of people trying to project their own negative body values onto her, as well as pitting the two friends against each other. 

Previous research shows that looking at Instagram for just 30 minutes a day can wreck a woman’s body image – exactly because of the kind of entrenched body norms that Ratajkowski refers to. 

This isn’t the first time the actor has become embroiled in a social media row. She previously called out social media trolls who targeted her for not wearing a bra during a feminist protest last year. 

Main image: Getty