Samantha Hoopes Is Absolutely Radiant in These 6 Pics From Malta

The seven-time SI Swimsuit model served the ultimate flirty vibes during her 2016 appearance.

Ananya Panchal | Dec 21, 2023

Samantha Hoopes was photographed by Ben Watts in Malta.

Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

SI Swimsuit stalwart Samantha Hoopes made a splash with her debut in 2014, when she double-dipped for a bodypaint feature with talented artist Joanne Gair and another breathtaking beachside photoshoot with Walter Iooss Jr. in St. Lucia.

The 32-year-old, who returned to the fold and posed for a total of seven separate issues, has traveled to Oregon, Malta, Curaçao, Nevis and Australia with the magazine. Her most recent photoshoot was in the British Virgin Islands in 2020, where the Pennsylvania native was captured by Josie Clough.

Hoopes, who is the youngest of five sisters, has modeled for GUESS and Levi’s Jeans, and has been featured in Maxim. Today, she and her husband, Italian entrepreneur Salvatore Palella, share a son, George, and a daughter, Kennedy.

“People close to me say modeling’s not forever and I agree with them, but I also think the time is now or never so I’d rather have now to look back on rather than never have done it,” she said at the time of her SI Swimsuit debut. “I’ve always lived in my house under my parents roof. Then when I moved to Hollywood last year, I felt so liberated and like a different person. I could wake up and choose what I wanted to do. For once in my life I’m following my heart instead of doing what people tell me to do.”

Below are six jaw-dropping pics from her 2016 photoshoot with Ben Watts in Malta.

Samantha Hoopes — Ben Watts/Sports Illustrated

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Published Dec 21, 2023

ANANYA PANCHAL

Ananya Panchal is a writer on the Lifestyle and Trending News team for SI Swimsuit. Before joining SI Swimsuit in 2022, she worked at Bustle, the San Francisco Chronicle and the TODAY Show. When she is not writing or doom-scrolling on social media, Panchal can be found playing sudoku, rewatching One Tree Hill or trying new restaurants. She's also a coffee and chocolate (separately) enthusiast. Panchal has a bachelor’s in communications and journalism from Boston University.