Adding ‘actress’ to a model resume

Although it’s been more than two decades since the supermodel-turned-actress began her fashion career, which included a record number of “Sports Illustrated’’ swimsuit edition covers, she doesn’t think things have changed that much. Macpherson, 46, who remains a stunner, certainly hasn’t.

“What this show indicates is [that] the same human issues come up, whether it was 25 years ago or now,’’ Macpherson says of the soapy series, which premieres tomorrow at 9 p.m. on the CW (WLVI, Channel 56). “It’s, ‘How do I stand in my truth and still live in this world that disarms me?’ ‘How do I find my center when I feel so young and vulnerable?’ ‘How do I accept my beauty and capitalize on it without exploiting myself?’ There are many different nuances to this sort of coming-of-age story, from the inside out and the outside in.’’

Based loosely on the lives of co-producers and former models Ashton Kutcher and Adam Giaudrone, “Beautiful Life,’’ documents the highs and lows of a group of young runway wannabes sharing a “models’ residence’’ in New York. The aspirants include hot new “it’’ girl Raina (Sara Paxton), top dog Cole (Nico Tortorella), fading beauty Sonja (Mischa Barton), and wide-eyed Iowa farm boy Chris (Ben Hollingsworth). (Kutcher himself was an Iowa farm boy when he was discovered in a local bar.)

Macpherson costars as fierce modeling agency boss and former supermodel Claudia Foster. “She seems very detached and quite harsh in the beginning but I think we find that she has a soft spot,’’ Macpherson says.

“She’s the anchor of these young models; she’s been there, she’s done that, and she can see through the [expletive],’’ Macpherson adds. “Not only that, she is a businesswoman and we see the business of the industry and that’s something I have a lot of experience with.’’

Macpherson takes pride in her career, both posing on magazine covers and as an entrepreneur who launched a successful line of lingerie and intimate apparel as a transition after full-time modeling. Still, with only a few film and television credits on her resume, including a stint on “Friends,’’ she admits to jitters about costarring in a prime-time series.

“I may be a doyenne in the fashion industry,’’ she says with a laugh, “but I haven’t done a lot of television. I come to the set with butterflies in my stomach against these very seasoned actors that have been working since they’ve been 2 years old.’’

Sarah Rodman can be reached at srodman@globe.com