Netflix is pulling back the curtain on one of reality TV’s most controversial shows, and the revelations are already causing shockwaves.
Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model premieres February 16, featuring Tyra Banks finally addressing scandals that have haunted her legacy for years.
Entertainment Weekly dropped an exclusive trailer that shows Banks, former judges, and contestants confronting everything from blackface accusations to alleged sexual harassment.
The three-episode documentary promises to be both a nostalgic trip down memory lane and a reckoning with problematic practices that defined the modeling competition from 2003 to 2018.
Banks Breaks Her Silence
After years of relative quiet on ANTM’s controversies, Banks sits down for an in-depth interview that appears brutally honest.
I knew I went too far.
That admission from the supermodel and show creator sets the tone for what promises to be an unflinching examination of the series’ darkest moments.
I haven’t really said much. But, now it’s time.
Banks maintains she created ANTM to challenge fashion industry standards by casting models of different races, body types, and backgrounds. She repeats a familiar refrain in the trailer about her original intentions.
I wanted to fight against the fashion industry.
From Groundbreaking to Monster
Initial praise from contestants quickly sours in the documentary’s narrative arc. Whitney Thompson, the show’s first plus-size winner from cycle 10, acknowledges Banks opened doors for her.
The only reason the door was opened to me was because of Tyra.
Cycle 1 contestant Giselle Samson reflects on the show’s 2003 UPN debut with similar fondness.
I felt like I was part of something so big.
But producer Ken Mok delivers a chilling assessment that signals the tonal shift.
There was a moment I realized, ‘Oh my God, I think we’ve built a monster.’
Racial Cosplay Controversy Resurfaces
One of ANTM’s most criticized practices gets significant attention: photo shoots where contestants portrayed different ethnicities through makeup and styling.
Jay Manuel, the show’s photo shoot director and editorial creative lead, appears in old footage telling contestants they’d be switching ethnicities for a photo challenge. This happened twice during the series run, in cycles 4 and 13.
Miss J’s reaction in the trailer speaks volumes.
Baby girl, baby girl!
Manuel offers insight into Banks’ drive for ratings and controversy.
I realized Tyra would do anything for the success of her show.
Banks has previously defended these shoots, insisting she never put models “in blackface” and that her intention was spreading beauty while breaking down barriers. However, cycle 13 contestant Jennifer An told Entertainment Weekly she didn’t know producers would paint contestants’ bodies during a Hawaii-based shoot in 2009.
Behind-the-Scenes Betrayal
Success brought upheaval to ANTM’s judging panel. Manuel, Miss J, and photographer Nigel Barker were all dismissed following cycle 18’s premiere in 2012.
Manuel’s hurt comes through clearly in the trailer.
I felt slapped across the face.
Barker confirms the depth of Manuel’s feelings, noting he “felt betrayed.” Manuel apparently didn’t take the dismissal quietly, telling camera crews he “slapped back.”
Many interpreted Manuel’s 2020 novel The Wig, The Bitch & The Meltdown as thinly veiled fiction about working with Banks. The book follows a fictional modeling competition hosted by a tyrannical glamazon—drawing obvious parallels to ANTM.
Contestants Share Painful Memories
Cycle 4 finalist Keenyah Hill appears crying in the trailer while reflecting on alleged sexual harassment she also discussed with Entertainment Weekly in 2023.
Danielle Evans, cycle 6 winner, underwent a dental procedure during competition to remove what Banks considered a problematic gap between her front teeth. Evans breaks down emotionally in the documentary.
It’s a TV show to you guys, but this is my life.
She describes certain ANTM elements as “horrific” and “so f—ed up.”
Banks Shifts Blame to Viewers
The trailer ends with Banks making a controversial claim about who drove the show’s increasingly extreme content.
It was very, very intense, but, you guys were demanding it. So, we kept pushing more and more and more.
This deflection to audience demand places responsibility outside the production team—a stance likely to spark debate when the documentary drops.
TikTok Sparked Renewed Scrutiny
After ANTM’s final season aired on VH1 in 2018 as cycle 24, social media—particularly TikTok—brought renewed attention to problematic moments.
Younger viewers reassessed everything from racial cosplay to harsh judging critiques. Several former contestants shared shocking behind-the-scenes stories that accumulated into a damning portrait of the show’s culture.
Banks addressed some concerns during the 2025 Essence Black Women in Hollywood Awards, admitting she said “some dumb s—” on ANTM. She defended her overall legacy by highlighting groundbreaking casting choices.
I refuse to have my legacy be about some stuff linked together on the internet when there were 24 cycles of changing the world.
She pointed toward casting transgender model Isis King in cycle 11, Tahlia Brookins with burn scars in cycle 12, multiple plus-size models throughout the series, and Winnie Harlow with vitiligo—who went on to become an international supermodel.
What Producers Promise
Jon Adler from EverWonder Studio describes ANTM as “a groundbreaking force that forever shaped pop culture” with a complicated legacy requiring deeper examination.
Jason Beekman from Wise Child Studios calls Reality Check “a fun, fast-moving nostalgia trip” that also examines serious issues around gender, race, exploitation, and personal conflict.
All three episodes become available February 16 on Netflix, promising fresh insights and intimate reflections from those who created and competed on one of reality television’s most influential—and controversial—series.