Tyra Banks has initiated legal action against Netflix, asserting that the streaming service defamed her through its documentary series examining the production of America’s Next Top Model. The lawsuit centers on the docuseries Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model, released in February, which has reignited scrutiny of the long-running reality competition.
Allegations of Defamatory Editing
According to legal documents, Banks claims that producers utilized only a fraction of her extensive interview for the series. She alleges that out of a three-hour-plus conversation, just 16 minutes were incorporated into the final product. Banks contends that this footage was manipulated through “selective editing, deliberate omission, and surgical manipulation” to construct a “false and defamatory narrative.”
A key point of contention in the lawsuit is the implication that Banks “knowingly allowed a contestant to be sexually assaulted on her show.” Furthermore, the complaint suggests the series implied Banks exploited the contestant’s trauma for ratings and subsequently demonstrated a lack of recall regarding the incident when questioned.
Focus on Cycle 2 Incident
The documentary prominently features allegations from Shandi Sullivan, a contestant from Cycle 2, who claims she was not adequately protected following a sexual assault involving a guest during filming. Sullivan’s account in the series details an incident that was initially framed on the show as an infidelity storyline. However, Sullivan has since asserted that the event was a sexual assault, stating she had “blacked out” due to alcohol and that “no one did anything to stop it.”
In the docuseries, Sullivan recounted her experience, stating, “I remember being in the shower. And then just sitting in the shower. And then we were in the bed.” She added, “I was blacked out for a lot of it. I didn’t even feel sex happening, I just knew it was happening, and then I passed out.”
Banks Disputes Portrayal and Lack of Awareness
Banks disputes the portrayal of the incident, particularly the suggestion that she was unaware of Sullivan’s participation in the documentary. The lawsuit emphasizes that Banks has consistently acknowledged the event as a sexual assault. The legal filing describes the implication that she “cannot even remember” the case as “devastating and deliberate.”
Sullivan, reflecting on the production, suggested that staff should have intervened, remarking, “I think after getting out of the hot tub, and whatever happened after that, I think they should’ve been like, ‘All right, this has gone too far. We gotta pull her out of this.’”
Executive producer Ken Mok, in commentary within the series, appeared to defend the show’s approach, noting that “there’s going to be cameras with you 24/7, day in and day out, and they’re going to cover everything.” Banks, in her own remarks within the documentary, indicated a difficulty in discussing production matters, stating, “It’s a little difficult for me to talk about production because that’s not my territory.”
