Lauren Chan is GAY

Running around Chinatown with Canada's finest.

Aug 06, 2026

∙ Paid

Lauren Chan and I met up in Chinatown on the hottest day of the year.

Lauren is strikingly gorgeous, but her effortlessly chic and warm vibes are entirely disarming. We’d only texted before the shoot date, but I felt calm, eager, and inspired as soon as she walked into the dumpling shop we’d coordinated to meet up at.

Lauren creates a new meaning to being a jack-of-all-trades. She famously was the first out lesbian to grace the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue — off the heels of selling her fashion brand, Henning, to Universal Standard, and that was off the heels of appearing on Canada’s The Traitors. Like, okay!!

Shooting with Lauren was the easiest shoot of my life — she’s a complete supermodel, and I feel honored to have worked with her. I think you’ll see why.

Here’s our shoot and conversation, enjoy!

Who were you in your middle school friend group?

The jock.

Fuck, marry, kill: plane, car, train.

Fuck the plane (private plane, obviously — trying to get on one), marry the car, kill the train.

What’s one thing you’re feeling hopeful about right now?

Gay people.

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What are you wearing when you feel most yourself?

Something inspired by drag, something camp, something that makes me feel powerful. Today: a thrifted MIU MIU gray dress with a ribbon, found on Etsy, plus Naturalizer heels — the most comfortable heels I’ve ever worn. Second outfit: a custom T-shirt by Willy Norris (my favorite designer of all time), a thrifted Saint Laurent jacket, and a pin from my friend Olivia at Dauphinette — it belonged to her mother.

You’re an activist, writer, editor, model, performer, host — what keeps you reaching for all of it?

I have a very clear North Star: making people who’ve felt marginalized — particularly in communities I’m part of, like the Asian community, the plus-size community, and the queer community — feel powerful and celebrated. Everything I do falls under that. It’s a wide variety of things, but it all makes sense to me.