Tyra Banks is suing Netflix over that America’s Next Top Model documentary!
According to People, the supermodel filed a lawsuit against the streamer on Saturday for defamation and editing her interview to support a false narrative in Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model! Whoa! The court documents state:
“Tyra Banks participated in the Netflix documentary series America’s Next Top Model (‘ANTM’) because she believed viewers deserved a candid conversation about the show’s legacy—its successes and its shortcomings. There are aspects of the show for which Ms. Banks takes accountability and she wanted ANTM viewers to hear that from her directly. Going into her interview, Ms. Banks did not limit the ANTM topics the interviewer could ask. During a three-and-a-half-hour interview, Ms. Banks answered questions about the show’s groundbreaking history, including criticism of decisions she would approach differently today.”
Tyra claimed fans were promised a documentary series based on “facts,” but what they got instead was “manufactured” drama and narratives:
“The Netflix series Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model (the ‘Netflix Series’) was sold to viewers as a ‘documentary series.’ Netflix called it ‘the definitive, must-watch chronicle of America’s Next Top Model.’ The genre matters. Viewers of a documentary do not expect manufactured drama or constructed narratives. They expect facts. Because they were promised a documentary, that is exactly how viewers interacted with the Netflix Series.”
In the suit, the host further claimed only 16 minutes of her over 3-hour interview was used in the documentary — but the clips included were “stripped of context and reassembled to support a false and defamatory narrative unrelated to what she actually expressed.” Tyra insisted she took accountability for some of the most controversial moments in ANTM, but Netflix edited them out.
But one of the biggest issues the former Victoria’s Secret Angel took with the project? That producers allegedly made it seem Tyra allowed cycle 2 contestant Shandi Sullivan to be sexually assaulted on the show and exploited her story:
“Worse, the false narrative the producers constructed—through selective editing, deliberate omission, and surgical manipulation of continuous footage—included that Ms. Banks knowingly allowed a contestant to be sexually assaulted on her show, exploited that contestant’s trauma for ratings, and then could not even remember it when asked. That narrative about Ms. Banks is a complete fabrication—one that Netflix streamed to a global audience of millions.”
Tyra pointed out two “partially true” statements made by Mor Loushy, one of the directors and executive producers of the Netflix series – that she had an “opportunity to really go deep into the debates” about ANTM and to “share her side of the story.” The suit continued to say that in an interview:
“Ms. Loushy said Ms. Banks ‘was ready to speak, and I think that a lot of her answers were very honest. And it’s all in the show, really.'”
To which Tyra responded in the documents that she “did share her side,” adding:
“Her answers were very honest. But the story that viewers heard was the deceptive story producers chose to tell.”
Hmm…
As we mentioned, the Shandi storyline is a big issue for Tyra in the suit. You may recall that the former model claimed she had been sexually assaulted by one of the male models when they came over to drink at the house while the contestants were in Italy. Shandi alleged she blacked out during the incident, but the reality show’s production team framed it as a cheating scandal since she had a boyfriend back at home rather than an assault.
When asked about what allegedly happened on Reality Check, Tyra only said she had no involvement in production or editing storylines. No apology. Nothing. However, the actress claimed in the suit that she had no idea Shandi revealed what happened to her was a sexual assault:
“The implication is devastating and deliberate: that Tyra Banks cannot even remember the story of the woman who was assaulted on her show. But that was false. The full footage of Ms. Banks’ interview reveals two things that the producers cut out and did not show viewers in Episode 1: before the upward glance, Ms. Banks nods—affirmatively, unmistakably—and immediately says, ‘I do remember her story.’ By carving the nod out of the middle of the sequence and cutting off Ms. Banks’ comment at the end, the producers ensured that viewers would see only the lie and not the truth.”
Additionally, Tyra addressed the claims that she shut down production during one cycle after a crew member reported a regular ANTM cast member of participating in inappropriate misconduct:
“That response would not have been hypothetical. It would have been 20 based on what Ms. Banks actually did during one cycle after a person on the crew reported directly to Ms. Banks that another regular member of the ANTM cast had engaged in a pattern of inappropriate sexual conduct during production of ANTM. Ms. Banks immediately shared the report with other executives and ensured the issue was escalated to the network. Ms. Banks acted promptly and gave the matter the serious attention it deserved. In response, production was paused so the entire cast and crew could undergo sexual harassment training conducted by an outside expert.”
Elsewhere, she touched on the drama with Miss J Alexander. The runway diva extraordinaire opened up about how he suffered from a stroke in 2022 that left him unable to walk in the documentary. And when asked if Tyra had visited following the health scare, he said no but that she had texted him. Calling the allegations “hurtful,” Tyra explained in the lawsuit that she couldn’t visit Miss J because she was in Australia:
“Had the producers informed Ms. Banks that part of the Netflix Series narrative would include Miss J saying that Ms. Banks never visited him in the hospital, Ms. Banks would have explained that she had been living in Australia for 2 1/2 years.”
She also didn’t get the chance to show the unanswered texts she sent to Miss J and text chains with other crew members trying to find him after the stroke:
“She would have shown how hard she tried to get in touch with Miss J personally when she had initially heard the news of his stroke. And she would have shown the text message that arrived from Miss J’s family member who eventually texted back months later and apologized for not responding to Ms. Banks’ texts and multiple calls sooner due to her being focused on getting him better.”
According to Tyra, she eventually got into contact with Miss J, and they remained in touch for three years until right before the documentary dropped:
“Ms. Banks would have explained that after that contact, she and Miss J spent three years communicating. They spoke live on the phone at least once. They exchanged voice notes, many photos, and video messages. They texted numerous times. As recently as Christmas Day 2025, Ms. Banks and Miss J exchanged holiday messages and he updated Ms. Banks about his improved health. She replied, ‘Yesssssss Can we speak this week?’ They never spoke. Just weeks later, the Netflix Series streamed to a worldwide audience. Again, the producers deprived viewers of truth by withholding from Ms. Banks the information about what others had said in their Netflix interviews and not providing her with an opportunity to respond. There are numerous other examples.”
Now Tyra is asking for “damages, including loss of future business opportunities, loss of business income, other compounding losses as will be shown at trial” after her “false and defamatory” portrayal in the documentary. She claims to have suffered from “significant mental anguish” due to Netflix’s alleged actions and wants a jury trial to determine “appropriate” compensation for her involvement in the series.
At this time, Netflix hasn’t responded to Tyra’s allegations in the lawsuit. What are your reactions, Perezcious readers? Sound OFF in the comments (below)!
[Image via Netflix/YouTube]