LOS ANGELES (AP) — Tyra Banks has filed a defamation lawsuit against Netflix and the directors of its docuseries “Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model,” alleging that the producers stripped down hours of interview footage to construct a false narrative. In the lawsuit filed Saturday in Los Angeles federal court, the model who created and hosted “America’s Next Top Model” said she was interviewed for 3 ½ hours, during which she took responsibility for some of the show’s controversial decisions. Those interviews were edited down to 16 minutes and manipulated “to support a false and defamatory narrative unrelated to what she actually expressed,” the lawsuit said.“The accountability Ms. Banks took ended up on the cutting room floor. It was there, but viewers were never given the opportunity to see it,” her lawyers wrote. Banks is seeking damages in her lawsuit against Netflix, the directors Daniel Sivan and Mor Loushy and EverWonder Studio. She’s also seeking an injunction barring the use of her image in connection with the docuseries’ soundtrack, released as an album.
Emails seeking comments were sent Sunday to the defendants’ representatives.
“America’s Next Top Model” launched in 2003 and ran for 24 seasons. In recent years, the reality competition series has undergone a critical reevaluation over accusations of body shaming, manipulation of contestants and problematic photoshoots. Banks has previously addressed those criticisms, acknowledging “the insensitivity of past ANTM moments” and “some really off choices.”
