Shortly after Emily Ratajkowski split from “Saturday Night Live” alum Pete Davidson, the model, actor and author took to her podcast “High Low” to discuss heteronormative relationships and her “hate” for “especially the men” who can’t handle it. Strong women.
Ratajkowski told model and influencer Olivia Ponton on Tuesday’s episode that she’s always felt like an independent woman, but often embraces that attitude because every man she’s currently dating is attracted to her — only for them to inevitably chastise her for that he stayed.
“That’s what I hate about dating men the most,” Ratajkowski said. “They say, ‘OK, yes, you’re special. You did. And they love him and love him, and then slowly, slowly, they’re emasculated and… they don’t know what to do with those feelings, and then it shocks you.
“They start to tear you down,” he added, “and then you’re back to square one. And it’s so unfair and unfair because I feel like a lot of men who really think they want a strong woman really don’t know how to handle it and … what it means to their own identity.”
When Ponton added that some men are “intimidated” by “strong women” and she wasn’t sure why, Ratajkowski said they probably don’t know why either. Ratajkowski, who reportedly met with Davidson for about two months, suggested a power-centered confusion was brewing.
“Weirdly, with heteronormative relationships, I think that’s what happens,” she said.
“Strength and power are associated with the masculine, and once a woman has that, a man doesn’t know what else he has,” she continued. “And I’m like, ‘How about you be better at expressing your emotions and being there emotionally?’ It would be great.'”
Ponton added that some male partners from her past wanted her to be their mother at the same time. The 20-year-old said she has no intention of filling that role, especially for men older than her. This reminded Ratajkowski of a recent eye-opening conversation.
“I said to my girlfriend, ‘I feel like I attract the worst men,'” Ratajkowski said. “Sometimes I’m like, ‘Damn.’ Because I want a confident man. I don’t want an overconfident man who has something to prove and tries to prove it through me. It’s not what I want.”
Ponton has a huge following on TikTok and was recently invited to the White House with other influencers to be briefed on President Joe Biden’s Inflation Relief Act, according to NPR. The bisexual model said dating women briefly overshadowed male relationships for her.
“It’s one of the reasons I understand dating women,” Ratajkowski replied. “Because yes, there can be competition, there can be whatever, but there’s respect that it doesn’t feel like somebody’s taking something from somebody else.”
Listen to the full episode of “High Low” on Spotify.
