Have you seen this man?
Jeremy Meeks became better known as the "Hot Felon" when his handsome mugshot took the
internet by storm.
Upon his release, modeling gigs and lots of drama ensued.
From dating an heiress to working with Tommy Hilfiger, will the prison bae's good fortune
last?
America's Most Wanted
In February 2018, Vogue magazine hailed Jeremy Meeks as
"...fashion's hottest commodity."
"Well Jeremy just made his debut at New York fashion week walking in the Philipp Plein's
fashion show."
That's quite the reversal of fortune for a man who was charged with gun possession and
resisting arrest in 2014.
"We're learning Meeks has a long and ugly rap sheet.
In and out of jail since 2002."
"This is really not me.
I'm not some kingpin."
Because we now live in an upside-down world, Meeks unwittingly became an internet sensation
when the Stockton Police Department shared his mugshot on Facebook.
The now-iconic image quickly captivated carnal imaginations around the world.
"This guy is hot, man."
"There you go."
"Oh my gosh."
"Right?"
"I'm just looking at him from my computer and…my god."
According to The Sun, the mugshot garnered 75,000 likes, 10,000 shares, and roughly 20,000
mushy comments.
People just couldn't resist those criminally icy blues…not to mention the cheekbones
you could use to slice Provolone!
It wasn't long before modeling agencies came knocking.
On the heels of being released from the clink, Meeks reportedly inked a deal with White Cross
Management.
As the media worked around the clock drumming up nicknames, The Blue Eyed Bandit!
Jail Bae!, Meeks parlayed his unlikely internet fame into a lucrative modeling career.
Jeremy Meeks and Tommy Hilfiger
A year after making his New York Fashion Week debut for Philipp Plein, Meeks demonstrated
his staying power by surprising everyone with a special appearance at the Tommy Hilfiger
Spring 2018 show.
There he went, sauntering down the runway in a baseball cap, sporty jacket, shorts,
and hoodie.
Vogue magazine gushed effusively that Meek's handsome face was far too hidden by Hilfiger's
stylings.
And this was hardly Meeks' most glamorous turn since strutting away from his prolific
criminal past.
Following his release from prison, Meeks also landed a way-glam Carolina Lemke sunglasses
campaign.
"So, is it true what they say about you?"
"Which part?"
"That you don't blink?"
"Guess we're about to find out."
Jeremy Meeks is everywhere, and he's staring right at you, and that's totally okay.
You're probably wondering how he's adjusting to his new life.
Meeks has some good news for you.
Talking to Male Model Scene, the reportedly still-active Northside Gangster Crips member
said:
"To go from my upbringing and my world to this new career I felt a lot of pressure to
not fail, for myself, for my kids, and for everyone else who looks up to me."
Banned!
All that talk about how "crime doesn't pay" doesn't seem to hold much water these days.
"There's been a lot of discussion over this next story.
In fact, some don't think it's a story at all."
"Is he cute?"
"Mmm, no."
"So that's a lot of people, not me."
"He's too thug for me."
Mm-hmm.
Meeks has spent the better part of his life in jail, previously serving a nine-year sentence
in 2002 for felony grand theft, a pesky fact that's often lost in the shuffle.
According to TMZ, his rap sheet evidently includes corporal injury to a child, because
he reportedly beat up a 16-year-old back in the day.
He also allegedly resisted arrest, and attempted to steal pellets from a sporting goods store…a
stunt that got him pepper-sprayed by a security guard after he allegedly shouted:
"I'll f--- you up!"
That sordid past sometimes catches up with Meeks in the most unlikely places.
While he might be considered the Hot Felon, that doesn't mean he's necessarily welcome
across the pond.
In April 2017, after a grueling flight, Meeks was detained at London's Heathrow Airport
and denied entrance into the country.
"London don't want me here.
Escorts, escorts."
Divorce and child support
For a long time, Jeremy Meeks was embroiled in a decidedly-not-cute divorce with his ex-wife
Melissa, who doesn't exactly shy away from the spotlight, either.
"We had a really good life together."
In late 2017, TMZ reported that Meeks agreed to pony up $1,000 a month for child support,
but he reportedly won't have to pay spousal support.
It seems Meeks has also moved on romantically, and he might even be conspiring to move up
romantically: He's now very much in love with Topshop heiress Chloe Green.
Sadly, it seems quite clear that Melissa Meeks' boo is now officially her boo-hoo.
"What do you want to say to Jeremy?"
"Melissa was overcome with emotion."
"No, no, no, no, hold on!"
Stop that distractingly beautiful man!
In September 2017, the Daily Mail revealed that Jeremy Meeks and Chloe Green were seen
lingering around a glitzy event honoring Leonardo DiCaprio's environmentalist work.
It was just one of several events the couple attended, and the press dutifully cataloged
each and every sweet nothing.
"The two were seen kissing passionately and sitting on one another's laps."
Is that even physically possible?
Anyway...In regards to his newfound romance, Meeks told the Mirror:
"I've never been happier in my life than right now.
We've found love, we're in love, and we are very happy."
And just to clear up any confusion, Meeks wanted everyone to know he's not some garden-variety
opportunist using Chloe for her money:
"I love Chloe for her, and if she didn't have a dollar, I wouldn't give a s--- because we're
so happy."
Just…chills.
Wedding bells?
Ever since July 2018, when Chloe Green started sporting a rock that could inspire any number
of thieves, the rumor mill started going absolutely wild.
The beat on the street was that the wealthy heiress and the former bad boy were getting
married.
But the couple has played these engagement rumors very close to the chest…despite the
fact that they welcomed a son, Jayden Meeks-Green, into the world in May 2018.
Let it suffice to say, Melissa Meeks had a few thoughts about that.
"He's not even divorced yet, and you're already having another child."
Asked if he and Chloe Green ever planned to marry, Meeks told Daily Mail TV in January
2019:
"In the…In the future."
Meanwhile, Melissa got a smile makeover in April 2018, courtesy of Inside Edition:
"Here she is before, and here she is after receiving the sparkling white veneers."
How Melissa learned the news
When her husband began traveling to fulfill his modeling duties, Jeremy Meeks' now ex-wife
Melissa thought their relationship was going through a run-of-the-mill adjustment period.
In 2017, She told This Morning:
"People who are married who have been in long-term relationships, you know, you go through your
ups and downs.
I just thought that this was a new chapter in our life that we had to work through."
So how did Melissa learn of Meeks' affair?
In 2017, she told the Daily Mail that she woke up one morning only to discover that
a picture of Jeremy and Chloe Green was splashed all over the newspapers:
"The first I learned of [the affair] was when I woke up and checked my phone."
To make matters worse, a complete stranger reportedly sent Melissa a photo of Jeremy
and Chloe Green kissing.
And they sent it to her via her DMs, because this is the world in which we live.
Melissa described this experience in no uncertain terms:
"I went into shock.
I felt nauseated.
It was like a bomb had gone off and my whole world had been blown apart…I thought Jeremy
was working."
Well, in many regards, he was.
Money matters
By any standard, the divorce between Jeremy and Melissa Meeks has proven to be a drawn-out,
messy affair.
According to TMZ, court documents from November 2017 indicated that Jeremy didn't want to
give a dime to Melissa, particularly after she embarked on her aforementioned makeover
journey.
As TMZ reported, the court documents argued that Meeks:
"...sets a good example for his son, while [Melissa] gives interviews to the media and
engages in 'televised reconstructive surgeries'...."
That might sound a bit hypocritical…especially coming from a man who had just been photographed
romancing his new girlfriend on a boat in St. Barts.
Melissa reacted with outrage and disgust, telling TMZ:
"Jeremy struts around on a catwalk in his underwear and that's okay for our son to see,
but my attempts to help shape my public image are wrong?"
As Melissa's lawyer Lisa Bloom told Inside Edition:
"She just wants what she's legally entitled to."
In November 2017, Melissa made quite the accusation on Instagram:
"My ex has already been unfaithful in his new relationship…I'd rather be alone and
happy with self respect than to be played."
Fortunately for Melissa, new love will often blossom in the most unlikely of places...like
this October 2017 episode of Inside Edition:
"The 6'5 hunky athlete arrives with flowers.
They're off to a good start."
"I think Theo is such a handsome man."
Jeremy Meeks' son
After returning from an opulent birthday extravaganza in Paris, Jeremy Meeks kept it exceedingly
real by flying out to California to paid a visit to his 8-year-old son, Jeremy Junior.
Feverishly reporting on Meeks' every move, The Daily Mail noted his, quote, "trademark
off-duty style," which consisted of a tracksuit and gold chains.
The tabloid was evidently right there as the two Jeremys visited The Commons to enjoy lunch
and celebrate Jeremy Jr.'s birthday.
Photos of the event were posted to Instagram but they've since been deleted, so we'll paint
a "word picture" for you: The birthday boy was doubled over in excitement as he ripped
into piles of presents, including a PlayStation 4, Star Wars and Batman toys, and a toy gun
or three.
And it looks like Jeremy Junior can look forward to plenty of visits like these: In March 2018,
a child support deal was finalized between Jeremy and Melissa.
According to TMZ, the child would be in his father's custody thirty percent of the time.
Lisa Bloom, Melissa's lawyer, summed up the situation to TMZ like this:
"The parties have worked together to come up with a reasonable child custody and visitation
schedule, as parents should."
That all sounds almost suspiciously mature…and our gut tells us the saga between these exes
isn't over.
He's planning some home invasions
Jeremy Meeks no longer wants to be called Hot Felon.
Even though the nickname became the kind of branding dream that ad agencies kill for,
Meeks simply doesn't want to carry his criminal association into eternity.
Speaking with Gulf News in February 2019, the ravishing rogue said:
"Labels in general imply that people cannot change, and I definitely have."
Meeks added that the fashion industry gave him a newfound sense of purpose.
It's a sentiment he echoed in an interview with DailyMailTV in January 2019:
"Life is good, God is good, I'm blessed, I can't ask for anything else."
As he told Gulf News, he hopes to reach the uppermost levels of the fashion and entertainment
industries in the future, and he wants to become a mentor to troubled kids.
As for what the year 2019 might bring, he was feeling incredibly optimistic:
"[The] sky is the limit, I can promise you this.
You will see me in your homes whether you like it or not."
Whoa, wait, what?
Fortunately, Meeks clarified his quote:
"Turn on your televisions, open your magazines, and I will appear."
Phew!
We were about to hide our televisions.
Maybe Meeks' next endeavor should be a focus on phrasing.
Rise of the Hot Felons
Someone had better watch his distractingly well-proportioned back.
"Another viral mugshot has led to another modeling contract."
If Mekhi Alante Lucky has his way, Jeremy Meeks will be yesterday's bad news.
According to The Sun, this young man has already been nicknamed "Prison Bae"and plans on being
"...even BIGGER than Jeremy Meeks."
In September 2017, the then-20-year-old told the tabloid:
"I don't want to follow in Jeremy Meeks footsteps...I want to go even further than he is going and
be even better."
If you hope to break into the competitive world of male modeling, it seems you've got
to have a killer mugshot, and Alante's doesn't disappoint.
Those mismatched eyes, one brown, one arctic blue.
Those cheekbones, sharper than switchblades!
Lady Luck smiled down on the North Carolina native the day he was pulled over for speeding
and arrested for driving a stolen vehicle.
Something of a career criminal, Alante was reportedly arrested five times between April
and December 2016 for a number of queasy crimes: breaking and entering, violating parole, and
assaulting a woman.
Good god.
But as far as the fashion world is concerned, that was then; this is wow!
The Sun reported that the St. Clare modeling agency has signed Alante, and he's already
getting tons of work.
He told the tab:
"This is a big chance to turn my life around."
Handsome felons of the world, never lose sight of your dreams.
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