LifeTime’s ‘The Client List’: Selling Sex, Exploiting Women

April 12th, 2012 3:01 PM

Jennifer Love Hewitt is baring it all in her new show “The Client List.” Hewitt stars as Riley Parks, a down-on-her-luck Texan mother who turns to prostitution to deal with financial woes, and the female-oriented network LifeTime is shamelessly plugging sex like there’s no tomorrow.

In the pilot Hewitt pranced around in racy lingerie, and did an impeccable job of feigning innocence as she sunk into the darker world of “The Rub,” a massage parlor that distributes sexual favors to special “clients” on the side. Rules for the job include “flexibility” and an “iron grip to make the big bucks.” 

Despite “The Rub’s” highly inappropriate and illegal nature, the owner declares she runs a “nice successful business.”

Hewitt was featured in overtly sexual promos where the actress lounged provocatively in nothing but her underwear.  “The Client List’s” creators also produced a tawdry music video starring a scantily-clad Hewitt writhing suggestively among semi-naked men to earn cash. The video is appropriately titled “Spend a Little Time with Me.”

While “The Client List” is far from modest the show’s ad campaign took a surprising turn by altering Hewitt's appearance. Previous posters focus on Hewitt’s prominent bosom, but recent “Client List” ads depict a version of the actress with her cup size dramatically reduced.