CALVIN KLEIN MODELS PAST AND PRESENT

Bang&Strike — The Archive

Calvin Klein Models
Past & Present


From the billboards that stopped traffic to the campaigns that changed men's underwear forever — the faces, the photographs, and the legacy of the most iconic underwear advertising in history.

We love a good underwear campaign — and when it comes to Calvin Klein, they are truly the masters of the form. From the groundbreaking 1990s images that made men's underwear aspirational to today's modern interpretations, CK has consistently cast some of the world's most recognisable faces and bodies.

We've gone through the archives to find our favourites — and where you can find similar styles from our own premium collections.

1
1992 — The campaign that started everything
Mark Wahlberg
Rapper · Actor · Icon
Mark Wahlberg Calvin Klein 1992 underwear campaign Mark Wahlberg Calvin Klein underwear advertisement 1992

This rapper, turned CK model, turned Hollywood actor is the undisputed number one. His legendary 1992 campaign with photographer Herb Ritts catapulted Calvin Klein into mainstream pop culture — those iconic white briefs appeared on billboards across the world and defined an era of men's underwear advertising.

Shot in high-contrast black and white, the images of Marky Mark in classic CK briefs created a template that underwear brands still reference today. The campaign was so culturally significant it's still discussed over thirty years later — which is probably why you're reading this.

Get the look
The same classic, clean aesthetic — premium cotton briefs in timeless black, white and charcoal. Simple, confident, essential.
Shop Core Cotton

"Before CK, men's underwear was purely functional. After 1992, it was aspirational."

The campaign that changed everything
2
Mid-1990s — The soap opera heartthrob
Antonio Sabato Jr.
Actor · Model
Antonio Sabato Jr Calvin Klein underwear campaign

Following Wahlberg's era-defining success, Calvin Klein tapped soap opera star Antonio Sabato Jr. for their mid-90s campaigns. His smouldering intensity and chiselled build continued the tradition of athletic, body-confident masculinity that defined the CK aesthetic — bringing a new audience to the brand while maintaining everything that made the 1992 campaign work.

Get the look
Body-defining fit, performance fabrics, contoured support — the STRIKE PRO range built for men who take their underwear seriously.
Shop Strike Pro
3
Early 2000s — The billboard that stopped traffic
Travis Fimmel
Model · Actor (Vikings)
Travis Fimmel Calvin Klein underwear model

Before he was Ragnar Lothbrok in Vikings, Australian model Travis Fimmel was the face of Calvin Klein in the early 2000s. His campaign was so successful that a Times Square billboard had to be removed after causing traffic accidents — the kind of cultural impact very few campaigns ever achieve.

Fimmel represented a new era: rugged, masculine, with an edge that appealed to a generation that wanted something more than polished perfection.

Get the look
Athletic cuts, bold waistbands, performance fabrics — PUMP! delivers that same confident, sporty aesthetic across briefs, boxers, jocks and thongs.
Shop PUMP!
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4
2006 — Sport meets fashion
Fredrik Ljungberg
Swedish Footballer · Arsenal FC
Fredrik Ljungberg Calvin Klein underwear campaign 2006

2006 brought Swedish footballer Fredrik Ljungberg — blonde, toned, sporting tattoos, and an edgy confidence that bridged sport and fashion in a way no previous CK campaign had. His appointment showed that the brand was as interested in athletes as it was in actors, and that performance and style were two sides of the same coin.

Get the look
Sporty, bold and unapologetically confident — the Teamm8 range from Australia brings that same athletic energy to premium underwear and swimwear.
Shop Teamm8
5
2008 — Hollywood comes to CK
Kellan Lutz
Actor · Twilight Saga
Kellan Lutz Calvin Klein underwear campaign 2008

He played Emmett — Edward Cullen's powerfully built brother — in the Twilight Saga, but his Calvin Klein campaign in 2008 was a different kind of performance. Lutz's athletic build showcased the body-conscious fit that made CK famous, reaching a new generation of fans who knew his face long before they knew his name.

"From a grocery store shelf-stacker to the face of one of the world's most recognisable brands."

Matt Terry — the modern face of CK
6
Present — The modern face
Matt Terry
Model
Matt Terry Calvin Klein underwear model

A few years ago Matt Terry was stacking shelves at his local grocery store in Pennsylvania and picking up the odd construction job. Now he's one of the faces of Calvin Klein — joining some of the most recognisable models in the world. He represents the modern CK ethos: accessible masculinity, quiet confidence, and the sense that the brand is as much for real men as it is for famous ones.

Get the look
Specialist fabrics, considered design, made in Greece since 1989 — Modus Vivendi brings the same attention to craft that defines the best underwear campaigns.
Shop Modus Vivendi

Why Calvin Klein Underwear Campaigns Changed Everything

01
Athletic bodies

Real physiques over airbrushed perfection — aspirational but attainable.

02
Minimalist aesthetic

Black and white, simple compositions — the product and the body were everything.

03
Premium fabric

Quality you could see and feel — underwear positioned as something worth caring about.

04
The waistband

The CK logo became a status symbol — branding designed to be seen above the waistline.

05
Timeless colour

White, black, grey — classics that never date and work on every skin tone.

06
Confidence

Celebrating the male form without apology — a new language for men's fashion.

Before Calvin Klein's 1990s campaigns, men's underwear was hidden away, never discussed and purely functional. CK made it aspirational, fashionable, and something men actually thought about. The influence is visible everywhere in premium men's underwear today — in the emphasis on fit, in the wide branded waistbands, in the monochrome photography, and in the choice of bold, athletic men as the face of the category.

Frequently Asked Questions

Antonio Sabato Jr. was one of the first major Calvin Klein male models to follow Mark Wahlberg, continuing the tradition of athletic, confident masculinity throughout the mid-1990s. Travis Fimmel followed in the early 2000s, bringing a more rugged edge to the brand.
No single model truly replaced Mark Wahlberg — his campaigns were that culturally significant. Calvin Klein continued with a succession of athletic, masculine models including Antonio Sabato Jr., Travis Fimmel, Fredrik Ljungberg and Kellan Lutz, each bringing their own interpretation to the brand's clean, confident aesthetic.
Yes — Mark Wahlberg (then known as Marky Mark) was the face of Calvin Klein underwear in 1992 in what became one of the most famous advertising campaigns in fashion history. Shot by photographer Herb Ritts in black and white, his images in classic white CK briefs appeared on billboards worldwide and defined an era of men's underwear advertising.
The 1992 Mark Wahlberg campaign is widely credited as the moment men's designer underwear became a mainstream fashion category rather than a functional afterthought.
Antonio Sabato Jr. bridged the gap — his mid-1990s campaigns continued the athletic, body-confident aesthetic while bringing a new audience to the brand through his soap opera fame.
Ljungberg was significant because he was a professional footballer rather than a model or actor. His 2006 campaign bridged sport and fashion underwear advertising in a way that hadn't been done before, showing that athletic identity could be central to a premium underwear brand's positioning.
All Calvin Klein imagery is copyright of Calvin Klein Inc. and used for editorial and historical reference purposes only. BANG&STRIKE is not affiliated with Calvin Klein.