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Tyra Banks is pushing back on how Netflix portrayed her in its recent docuseries. The supermodel is challenging the streamer’s use of her interview footage as part of her ongoing defamation lawsuit against the company.
Banks alleges that producers used only a small fraction of a much longer conversation she gave for “Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model.” According to her lawsuit, the final docuseries included roughly 16 minutes from an interview that ran more than three hours.
A dispute over context and framing
The latest argument centers on how the series presented Banks’ response to former contestant Shandi Sullivan. Sullivan appeared on Cycle 2 of “America’s Next Top Model” and has since described an incident during filming in Italy as a sexual assault, rather than the cheating storyline the show aired at the time.
Banks claims producers did not tell her about Sullivan’s account before asking her to respond on camera. Her lawsuit argues the edited footage made it appear she could not recall the story or was unwilling to engage with it seriously.
What the lawsuit claims happened
According to court documents, Banks says the final cut created a misleading impression of her full statement. She argues that portions of her interview where she took accountability for issues on the long-running series were left out of the final program.
The lawsuit describes the released footage as selectively edited and reassembled in a way that changed the meaning of what she actually said. Banks is seeking damages, along with the removal of her image from the docuseries’ companion soundtrack album.
Netflix’s response so far
Netflix has not filed a formal response to the lawsuit as of this report. The company has also declined to comment publicly on the allegations.
Banks’ legal team has said they requested unedited footage of her interview before filing suit, and that Netflix denied that request. The suit also claims Banks was not given an opportunity to respond to allegations raised by other participants in the documentary.
The bigger picture around the docuseries
“Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model” examined both the show’s popularity and its more controversial moments during its original run. Those included allegations of exploitation, a contestant undergoing cosmetic surgery to stay in the competition, and a widely criticized challenge involving blackface.
Banks has said she agreed to participate because she believed viewers deserved an honest look at the show’s legacy. Her lawsuit argues that the final product did not reflect the conversation she believed she was part of.
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