--- title: Christina Hendricks Says She's 'American Beauty' Hand Model description: Christina Hendricks might be best known for her role in 'Mad Men,' but she also revealed she was the hand model for 'American Beauty.' canonical: https://time.com/5659726/christina-hendricks-american-beauty-hand-model/ author: Cady Lang article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2019-08-23T15:26:43.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-04-13T08:00:02.482Z og:title: Christina Hendricks Says She's THE 'American Beauty' Hand Model og:description: It's her hand on the iconic poster og:url: https://time.com/5659726/christina-hendricks-american-beauty-hand-model/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt642c7c15c53f3970/698a01cd011682adfa97e183/christina-hendricks-american-beauty-hand-model.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 2000 og:image:height: 1125 og:image:alt: Premiere Of Disney And Pixar's "Toy Story 4" - Arrivals og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Christina Hendricks Says She's THE 'American Beauty' Hand Model twitter:description: It's her hand on the iconic poster twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt642c7c15c53f3970/698a01cd011682adfa97e183/christina-hendricks-american-beauty-hand-model.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Christina Hendricks Was the Hand Model for the _American Beauty_ Poster This Whole Time > Sponsored content. 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Every edition is assembled by TIME editors rather than generated automatically. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-brief-2026q3/newsletters?i=a575fab6-db99-4e64-800e-2bc355e7ff0d&cr=time-nl-brief-2026q3-v1)  by [Cady Lang](https://time.com/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Aug 23, 2019 3:26 PM UTC  LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 11: Christina Hendricks arrives at the premiere of Disney and Pixar's "Toy Story 4" on June 11, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Amanda Edwards/WireImage) LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 11: Christina Hendricks arrives at the premiere of Disney and Pixar's "Toy Story 4" on June 11, 2019 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Amanda Edwards/WireImage) Amanda Edwards—WireImage  by [Cady Lang](https://time.com/author/cady-lang/)  ## Cady Lang Aug 23, 2019 3:26 PM UTC [Christina Hendricks](https://time.com/3889680/christina-hendricks-elmo-sesame-street/) might be best known for her role as [_Mad Men_ ](https://time.com/mad-men-history/)femme fatale Joan Holloway, but it turns out she had a integral role in the iconic imagery of [_American Beauty._](http://content.time.com/time/specials/packages/article/0,28804,2078151%5F2078159%5F2078215,00.html) In an Instagram post shared on her personal account on Thursday, the actress shared that she used to be a model, and at times, a hand model, a gig that led her to being the hand model for the famous poster for _American Beauty,_ which features a hand holding a red rose against a bare stomach. In the caption to the post, Hendricks shared that the hand in the image is hers, held against another model’s stomach and that she was “proud to be a part of this film in any way!” The post shocked the Internet, with fans and fellow celebrities like her _Mad Men_ co-star January Jones and fashion designer Christian Siriano responding with surprise and delight in the comments of the post. 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