“Baywatch” star David Hasselhoff taught his daughter, Hayley, to love her naturality since childhood while the girl was teased and fat-shamed for her body.
At 30, she is the first plus-size woman who appeared on the Playboy cover and is very proud of her pictures.
Hasselhoff is very proud and supportive of his daughter’s challenging beauty standards.
David Hasselhoff, famous for his roles in titles like “Baywatch” and “Knight Rider,” has had an extensive career in Hollywood. Still, it never stopped him from starting his own family and raising his beautiful daughters.
Now, Hasselhoff is fiercely protective of his daughters and the journeys they are on in their lives. Recently, he talked about how proud he was of his daughter, Hayley, for her latest venture.
Hasselhoff welcomed his daughters, Hayley and Taylor Ann, with his ex-wife, Pamela Bach. The couple happily married and raised their daughters together for over a decade. Yet after 16 years of marriage, Hasselhoff filed for divorce.
The following day, Bach filed a different divorce claim, and the pair ensued a year-long divorce proceeding and custody battle. Finally, in 2007, Hasselhoff was awarded primary custody of his daughters, much to Bach’s dismay.
The ruling came after Hasselhoff’s lawyer submitted a 66-page filing that accused Bach of testing positive for cocaine use and being under the influence of substances at their eldest daughter’s sixteenth birthday party.
After that, Hasselhoff assumed most of the responsibility for his daughters and raised them to be well-rounded women who were confident and content with their lives and bodies.
Hayley, Hasselhoff’s youngest daughter, is forging her path as a plus-sized model. However, it has not always been easy for her. When she was younger, she was bullied for being bigger than other girls.
Hayley confessed that growing up in Los Angeles was difficult because the beauty standards do not account for curvy women. She said when she was a teenager and developing, she questioned why she didn’t look like other girls.
The model also said she developed sooner than her peers and recalled being teased for wearing a bra sooner than other girls. Even after becoming comfortable in her skin, she faced judgement from other and dealt with “fatphobic doctors.”
Talking about how she was judged by everyone, even those who were meant to be helping her, Hayley said:
“I have dealt with many people who still feel like society has a standard of beauty or that if you’re curve, you’re unhealthy.”
Hayley said that a lot of her childhood social anxiety came from constant conversations surrounding her weight. She also mentioned it takes time and work to become comfortable in one’s body.
Bach and Hasselhoff, who both starred in “Baywatch,” fitted society’s standard of beauty, but Hayley says she never felt like they pushed that ideal on her. Her parents supported and loved her for who she was.
How Did Hayley Become the First Plus-Sized Woman on a Playboy Cover?
In 2021, Hayley became the first ever plus-sized model to grace the cover of Playboy. She posed for the German edition of the publication and shared her pride at being awarded the opportunity.
Hayley did the shoot in Paris during the lockdown and wore her lingerie for the event. It was difficult for her team to find underwear in size 16-18 in the UK, so Hayley posed in her garments.
The model said she feels like being the first curvy model on the cover of a popular publication is a significant step forward for the plus-size modeling industry, even if she was initially apprehensive.
She admitted she had moments when she wondered if agreeing to pose was the right decision, but then she realized there was a greater purpose for her being on the cover of Playboy.
Hasselhoff’s daughter said it was empowering for her to do something that showed curvaceous women worldwide that they have just as much right to celebrate their bodies as anyone else. She said:
“If you’re a size two to somebody that’s a size 16-18, your body doesn’t have to be objectified; you can celebrate it in such an artful way. I am very proud of the photos — I think they look gorgeous.”
In 2022, Hayley took part in her next venture as a plus-size model, walking in a fashion show. She walked in a beachwear show for a brand called Cupshe. The exhibition comprised models of many different weights, sizes, and backgrounds.
Hayley said the show being so inclusive reminded people who watched it and were involved that their body type was perfect and beautiful because “beauty comes in all shapes and sizes.”
What Does Hasselhoff Think About His Daughter’s Modeling?
Hayley is proud of her body and often takes to social media to celebrate it, sharing photos that show off her body. Most recently, she shared pictures of herself in a form-fitting red dress.
The comments on the photos were all complimentary, saying she was “gorgeous” and “stunning.” She also recently shared a post where she said energy drinks were sometimes all that could get her through the early morning.
While many said they felt the same, others told Hayley how beautiful she was, and one person even said: “My favorite model.” Yet it is not only Hayley’s followers that praise her for her beauty.
Her parents, Bach and Hasselhoff, are just as besotted with Hayley as her fans are. The model believes her parents being proud of her has been instrumental in her impacting body positivity.
Hayley says her parents believe in her and her career choices as much as she believes in them and theirs. She gushed:
“My dad is very supportive of the choices I make for my own career. My mum and my dad are always very supportive in everything that I have done.”
She says she has been a curve model since she was 14, and her father has always been there to let her know that he is proud of everything she has achieved during her time in the industry.
