The Philippines’ Catriona Gray, the newly crowned Miss Universe, has earned new fans from around the world after the widely watched telecast of the pageant on Monday.
Tyra Banks, it appears, is among them.
Miss Philippines Catriona Gray walks the stage during the final round of the Miss Universe pageant in Bangkok, Thailand, December 17, 2018. Athit Perawongmetha, Reuters
The American model and TV host took to Twitter in her reaction to Gray’s performance shortly after the Filipina’s crowning moment in Bangkok, Thailand.
Banks quoted an earlier tweet from Gray responding to her. They previously exchanged tweets about Gray’s trending “slow-mo twirl” in the Miss Universe preliminary competition.
“OMG back at you! You did it!” Banks wrote. “And that walk and confidence? I mean… Next level fierce! TyTy approves.”
Banks, perhaps best known for her original televised “Top Model” search that has spawned international versions, is considered an influential force in the fashion world and has mentored many who aspire to be like her.
“Fierce,” in particular, is a term she has used to encourage or motivate modeling neophytes, as seen in her TV shows.
Gray brings to Filipinos an early “Christmas gift,” after having clinched a fourth Miss Universe crown for the country after Gloria Diaz (1969), Margie Moran (1973), and Pia Wurtzbach (2015).