Tyra Banks Addresses Her Controversial America's Next Top Model Comments: 'I Cringe'

Tyra Banks is taking blame for the America’s Next Top Model moments that have made her “cringe.”

As you have likely seen by now, clips have recently resurfaced online in which the host says some fairly cringeworthy things, and now she’s speaking out about it.

In one clip from cycle 13 of the reality competition series, Banks encouraged the models to darken their skin tones for a photo shoot. Another video shows Tyra asking cycle 6 winner Dani Evans:

“Do you really think you can have a CoverGirl contract with a gap in your mouth? It’s not marketable.”

Telling ET‘s Kevin Frazier via Zoom, she referenced the cycle 13 shoot:

“Yes, I apologized for it. Because we put it out and even me just watching it after, I was like, ‘Oh, this ain’t right.’ We felt like our skin is beautiful, let’s paint the world our color. And then when we saw it, we were like, ‘Oh no, this excuses other people to do this in a negative way.'”

The 46-year-old added:

“We realized that, and I went on my talk show and did an entire segment on what we did. What we did was wrong, and we apologized for it. But not everybody saw that. There’s a whole new generation of people that didn’t grow up with my show and didn’t see that.”

And as for the clip where she called out Evans’ gap, she admits:

“I cringe. And I cringe through the eyes of today.”

She previously apologized for the “insensitivity” of past comments made on the show via Twitter earlier this month. Banks wrote at the time:

“Been seeing the posts about the insensitivity of some past ANTM moments and I agree with you. Looking back, those were some really off choices. Appreciate your honest feedback and am sending so much love and virtual hugs.”

Not long after the fallout, former judge Jay Manuel announced the forthcoming release of his book, which is loosely based off of his life and experiences on the show. Today, Jay and Tyra have no relationship to speak of, and he noted that the last time they saw each other was in 2017:

“Over the past few years, we’ve emailed. To be very honest, we really have no relationship to speak of, which is really sad. Our time together on ANTM was amazingly productive and, at times, magical. We got to experience being part of a global phenomenon.”

What did U think of the controversial clips, Perezcious readers?? Let us know (below) in the comments.

[Image via The CW & WENN/Avalon.]