- 5 months ago
From controversial photoshoots to behind-the-scenes drama, America's Next Top Model wasn't always picture perfect. Join us as we countdown the most shocking scandals that rocked the modeling competition! From problematic challenges and unethical treatment to personal tragedies and post-show controversies, these moments had fans questioning what really happened when the cameras stopped rolling.
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00:00Can I see a close-up? Look at that. It's a blank eye, but there's some intensity in there.
00:05Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the times when the modeling
00:10competition got into hot water for problematic things happening behind or in front of the camera.
00:17Learn something from this! When you go to bed at night, you lay there and you take responsibility
00:21for yourself!
00:24Number 20. Clashing Co-Stars Various
00:27In the years since the show ended, some of the top model mentors and judges have come forward with
00:33less-than-kind stories about host and executive producer Tyra Banks. As early as 2009, former
00:41supermodel judge Paulina Poroskova was telling tales about the host's on-set behavior. Poroskova alleged
00:48that Banks would be as late as six hours to set some days. Everyone was just expected to wait.
00:54Supermodel and former co-star Janice Dickinson corroborated this.
00:59When there was an inconvenient moment, I'd say, shut up, girl. I did Vogue, you did L.
01:07How did she take that? She didn't like it.
01:13Creative director Jay Manuel detailed his deteriorating relationship with Banks after he left the show to
01:19pursue other opportunities. While the judges on Top Model were known for their harsh and often cold
01:25critiques, it seems things were just as frosty behind the scenes.
01:29So the first time I see her is walking onto set, you know, the panel we do in casting.
01:34Yeah, yeah.
01:34And I just said, hey, I'm so glad you're here early because I just want to
01:38walk right by.
01:41Number 19. The unhoused photoshoot, Cycle 10. When ANTM received a spike in popularity during
01:48the early COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, it also invited renewed interest in the show's more
01:55controversial moments. One that people could not believe was Cycle 10's unhoused-themed photoshoot.
02:01Today we're actually going to put a spotlight on a major issue, and that is homeless youth.
02:07You're going to be posing with homeless partners.
02:10Contestants were dressed down in disheveled clothes while their unhoused partners were made
02:15to model in the more expensive garments. Times were different, but it's hard to imagine this being
02:21okay ever.
02:23I'm about to cry.
02:24Fatima got really emotional by the end of the photoshoot. It's going to create a really passionate
02:29and powerful shot.
02:30It wasn't all bad, though. The photoshoot did introduce model and transgender activist
02:35Isis King to the top-model fold. At the time, King was sleeping at a shelter, but off the
02:41back of her work as an extra, she would go on to become a contestant on two future seasons.
02:52Number 18. Niall DeMarco's photoshoot in Darkness, Cycle 22.
02:58Although he won one of top-model's co-ed seasons, this boundary-breaking male model didn't sail
03:03through the competition. Niall DeMarco landed in the bottom of this episode because he
03:09wouldn't listen to the photoshoot director's instructions.
03:12Why don't you judge it yourself? Do you think that's your best shot?
03:15No, I don't think it's my best shot.
03:17Okay, great.
03:17I think that...
03:18No, that was the question. That was the question. Thank you.
03:22The only problem is the photoshoot was in pitch darkness, and DeMarco is deaf.
03:27The director could only give him audio commands.
03:31The photographer flashes, and it made me blind at that time because it was too bright.
03:36Go! Go!
03:38So I was looking down at the flashlight, and I wasn't sure if it was the first or the third
03:42flash.
03:42Where the other contestants can rely on their sense of hearing to get through the challenge.
03:47DeMarco obviously can't. In another cycle, this challenge might have made sense.
03:51But in a season with the franchise's first death contestant, it reads as either careless
03:56or cruel.
03:57I felt extremely bad for Niall. I just noticed that he was getting down and feeling not as
04:03confident as usual. I think he's worried that he might go home because of this.
04:08Number 17. Anne Ward's Waist Size. Cycle 15.
04:12The champion of the show's 15th season became controversial almost immediately through no fault
04:18of her own.
04:19Seeing people talking about me and stuff, it's been really hard because it really hurts.
04:24It's just mostly like the stares that get me.
04:27From the moment the previews for Cycle 15 aired, Ward's Waist Size became a lightning rod
04:32for controversy.
04:33A clip showing Judge Jay Alexander grabbing Ward's Waist to demonstrate its thinness inspired
04:39torrents of commentary.
04:40You have the smallest waist in the world. Can you look at this waist?
04:45And how tall are you?
04:46I'm 6'2".
04:47Top model's record on body image was not exactly untarnished at this point, but this
04:54blatant showcase of what the show's judges were presumably looking for didn't do much
04:59to improve it. The show only doubled down on this body standard by later awarding the contestant
05:05the season's title.
05:06Anne is that stunning, cultish, exotic, new sexy.
05:11It is without doubt in my mind that high fashion editorial Anne is already, without even knowing that she's high fashion.
05:19Number 16, J.L. Strauss's disastrous makeover, Cycle 8.
05:24Each season, Tyra Banks puts her modelling hopefuls through an often rigorous and even painful makeover
05:30process. Sometimes there are tears of joy, other times there are just tears. But sometimes the show
05:36goes a little too far.
05:37I've been in that dentist's office for 12 hours and I have to deal with it all day tomorrow. Look at my teeth.
05:47In Cycle 6, two models were encouraged to undergo extensive and painful dental work to fit Banks' vision for them.
05:54However, Cycle 8's J.L. Strauss may have had one of the worst experiences.
06:00There are things that we're really fighting here with your hair. The braided weave only comes so high
06:04and then we had to glue multiple tracks in. It's not taking you to that elevated look that the other
06:10girls are going to, like they're all starting to turn into kind of models. It's kind of bringing you down a little.
06:15Not only was she horrified to have her hair chopped off, but she had to sit through an 8-hour
06:20installation process for a new sewing weave. It was all for naught. The weave was taken out because
06:26it didn't look good. And Strauss ultimately was put through the ordeal for nothing.
06:30I have never had to go through that ordeal of getting my hair done and having to take it out the
06:34same day you get it put in. Like, that's absolute hell. You look so much better. Your face looks
06:41absolutely amazing. And I understand the tears for a minute. So decide whether or not you want to own it.
06:46I'm going to own this.
06:48Number 15. Kenya Hill's Harassment, Cycle 4. In one of the more upsetting on-set incidents in the
06:55franchise's history, Cycle 4 finalist Kenya Hill experienced harassment on a photo shoot in South
07:01Africa. Male model Bertini Humegni got too close for comfort.
07:05I kind of get into it and I hear Bertini moaning. I feel him like breathing on me,
07:13touching me, and it's not comfortable at all. Stop. When Hill stopped the shoot, creative director
07:18Jay Manuel stepped in minimally. He only reminded Hill that she was being unprofessional.
07:23I know that it's not about being comfortable, but there is a line that I feel was crossed.
07:28And I hope that doesn't come out in my picture when I go to panel.
07:31During the judging segment, Tyra Banks just told Hill that she should use her feminine
07:35wiles to avoid unwanted attention from men on set. Ultimately, it was an instance where a contestant
07:42wasn't protected the way they should have been.
07:45I feel a lot of pressure added on to me because I can end up being eliminated for not doing so
07:50well in a shoot because of his actions.
07:52Number 14. The first top model never got her prizes. Cycle 1.
07:56How bad do you want this? How bad do you want this, Adrienne?
08:00Real damn bad, Tyra Banks.
08:03A few years after she won the top model Cycle, the very first crown champion revealed her major
08:09beef with the show. Adrienne Curry-Road claimed that the show never gave her the prizes promised.
08:14She even alleges that Tyra Banks promised the first season's cast a major cosmetic campaign
08:20that never came through and wasn't even mentioned once the show aired. In fact,
08:25Curry-Road has further explained that she was sabotaged by behind-the-scenes tensions
08:29between ANTM and the modeling agencies they had contracted with.
08:34I was on a show, Top Model, that the fashion industry immediately decided that no one in Top Model
08:40would ever, ever be a supermodel, ever for any reason.
08:44She's been a vocal critic of Banks, the show, and Top Model fans ever since.
08:50Number 13. Jada's male model insults her to her face. Cycle 7.
08:55When they need to add some drama to the photoshoots, Top Model often throws male
09:00models and scene partners into the mix. Unfortunately, the drama that results is
09:04often pretty uncomfortable.
09:06This guy's a jerk and I don't want to talk to him and I don't want to look at him
09:09and I certainly don't ever want to kiss him. I feel so sick right now.
09:13In Cycle 7, Jada Young and her castmates filmed commercials with male models in Barcelona.
09:19One of these models, Nacho, told Jada he would have trouble posing with her
09:24because he was not interested in black women.
09:27He doesn't want to help me. I'm worried about tomorrow's shoot because I have to make out
09:30with this guy who's an idiot and a jerk and he says he doesn't like black girls.
09:34Not only was it a tremendously upsetting instance of racism, it was deeply unprofessional.
09:40But the judges blamed Jada for it, citing her commercial as the weakest and eliminating her.
09:45Bottom line is you're going to take control. It's not about him, he's just an extra.
09:49That should not have stopped her from doing the job that she was sent there to do.
09:54Number 12. Isis King's mistreatment. Cycle 11.
09:58Tyra Banks herself pursued this two-time contestant after she appeared in a photo shoot the season
10:03before.
10:04It blew me away and I tell my staff, I'm like, this girl is absolutely amazing. She's got to come back
10:11for America's Next Top Model. I said, this girl, and my staff said, Tyra, there's something a little
10:15different about that girl. So what's different about that girl? Isis King didn't go into her
10:19season with the intention of foregrounding her trans identity. Like the rest of her competitors,
10:25she just wanted to win. Unfortunately, once King's castmates found out she was a trans woman,
10:30it unleashed a torrent of ignorant comments.
10:33I would not do that. Don't do that.
10:35I know what I'm here for. I've given up so much to be here. I'm not letting any of these girls get in
10:39a way of my dreams and what I'm here for. Many of the contestants were not only unsympathetic,
10:45they were downright insensitive about it. King faced transphobic mistreatment from several of
10:50the other models. Since her time on Top Model, she's maintained her place as a trailblazer in
10:56the modeling and entertainment industries. Nobody didn't come and throw me no life raft,
11:01no life jacket. They let me dream. I had to doggy paddle all the way to the... That's what happened.
11:08They was just bolting girls over to the sand. I had the doggy paddle. That's why it took me
11:12longer to get here, but I'm here. Number 11. Kayla Farrell's discomfort with a male model.
11:17Cycle 15. Reality TV often purports to be a social experiment as much as a competition.
11:24People's very real traumas are often put on full display without trained professionals to help them
11:29through it. That was the case during a Cycle 15 photo shoot. I just can't get this whole kiss thing
11:35out of my head. It was deeper to me than just being gay. I feel personally uncomfortable with
11:42intimacy with men. Kayla Farrell was reduced to tears during a photo shoot that required the models
11:47to get intimately close to a male model. Farrell explains to Jay Manuel that her reaction stems from
11:54an incident from her past that made the challenge exceptionally difficult, if not traumatizing.
11:59And this whole challenge freaks me out. I don't want to kiss them. I don't want to interact with
12:05them. They scare me. Manuel's not a therapist, but he plays one for the moment, just to get her to go
12:12through with a potentially damaging photo shoot. One thing's for sure, this isn't the moment of healing
12:17the producers want us to think.
12:19Nobody. Not one family member knows, not one friend knows, so to just say it right then and there on
12:25Venice Beach like 20 minutes before I'm about to deliver a commercial was so, so hard.
12:33Number 10. The swimming pool shoot that caused hypothermia. Cycle 7.
12:38Try shooting Sports Illustrated in the snow, laying in the snow. I didn't do it, but other models do.
12:42The ANTM judges have always stressed that it is a model's job to push through the pain.
12:48But what happens when pushing through pain literally threatens your life?
12:52There's a point where my body just literally takes over. Like, I feel like my skin,
12:56and everything is just like pins and needles.
12:58In Cycle 7, models were asked to pose in a freezing cold pool for a floating water nymph photoshoot.
13:04This shoot tested not only their modeling capabilities, but also how well their body could
13:09handle extreme temperatures.
13:11It was so cold. Your breath is literally being taken away. You know, I just like,
13:14concentrate, breathe, breathe, breathe.
13:17Because putting yourself in danger is what modeling's all about, right? As it turned out,
13:22Carrie D actually developed hypothermia after being told to push through the photoshoot.
13:27To make matters worse, the judges told her she had to know her limits,
13:31and practically blamed her for putting her health at risk. Not cool.
13:35You have to listen to your body and you have to tell us, okay?
13:37Okay.
13:37Because all we know is go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go, go. But you have to tell us no.
13:42Number 9. Kaylin posed in a casket after her friend passed away. Cycle 4.
13:47We're gonna be dead. Rest in peace.
13:50We could be zombies. Please don't be this. I don't need dealing with death right now. I don't need that.
13:57ANTM audiences loved the sweet and kind-hearted Kaylin on Cycle 4, which is why this controversial
14:03moment was even harder to stomach. I was completely shocked.
14:07I don't know if I can handle this. Kaylin received the news that a close friend had passed away while
14:13she was on the show. And to make matters worse, the theme for the photoshoot that day was especially
14:18triggering. Each and every one of you are going to have to portray one of these deadly sins while
14:24looking deadly gorgeous. The models each had to represent one of the seven deadly sins,
14:30posing in a casket eight feet underground. Being forced to jump into a coffin on the same
14:35day she discovered her friend had died, was downright cruel. But she was representing wrath.
14:41Kaylin managed to put her anger at the situation to good use, getting a great shot and avoiding the
14:46wrath of the judges. I hope I did well enough to pull off a good picture to stay here this week,
14:52but I guess I just have to wait and see. Number 8. Model posed with blackface. Cycle 4 and Cycle 13.
14:59And Noelle, we're making you into a traditionally African woman with a head wrap and everything.
15:04Sure, Tyra's never been afraid of edgy photoshoots, but do you remember when she literally put
15:09models in blackface? Twice. Girls were dressed and painted to represent other races in Cycle 4's
15:15Got Milk photoshoot, where Miss J told the girls they had to take on the persona of these ethnicities,
15:22whatever that means. The challenge here really is taking on the persona of that other ethnicity
15:29while in the photograph and owning it. Then in Cycle 13, race-bending was the theme once again,
15:36for a biracial-themed shoot. Hoppa means half in Hawaiian. Do you guys know the most famous Hoppa
15:43in the world? President Barack Obama!
15:48White models were put in makeup to make them appear darker, and were dressed in stereotypical fashion
15:53garments and accessories, making for some pretty problematic pictures. After this concept sparked
15:59controversy, Tyra apologized for any offense caused on her talk show. But by then, the scandal had already
16:05stung.
16:06Brittany, you are going to be Native American and East Indian.
16:12Number 7. Yusai kept calling Chantel a panda. Cycle 21.
16:17I know when Yusai is calling me his lovable panda, it's coming from a very loving place and not a
16:22malicious place. But although it may not bother me, it could bother other people that have skin conditions.
16:28Having the first contestant with Vitiligo on the show was a big thumbs up for representation.
16:33Unfortunately, the inappropriate behavior of Yusai reminded us why representation
16:38like this is still so important.
16:41I don't want kids out there to see you, someone so high up in the industry,
16:45being able to call me panda and then see somebody else with a skin condition and be like,
16:49hey, Yusai could call Chantel panda, I can call this person a cow.
16:53Not only did he give Chantel the nickname panda based on the color of her skin,
16:57he threw a tantrum when she politely asked him to stop.
17:00When I gave you the nickname just to help you,
17:02if you don't understand it, you will no longer deserve that little soft nickname,
17:06I'll call you porcupine from now on.
17:07She reasoned that impressionable viewers may see this behavior as justification for calling
17:12people names based on their skin color, which is clearly not okay.
17:16Instead of immediately apologizing and moving on, Yusai told her he gave her the nickname to help her,
17:22that it was never insulting and that she no longer deserved the nickname. Yikes.
17:27I've had people who called me their best friend be like, oh, I can call you cow because we're friends.
17:32That doesn't make any sense. You still can't call me that. It's not appropriate.
17:36Number 6. Anjali Preston lost her crown and sued ANTM.
17:41Cycle 17.
17:42Anjali's confidence might have had some ups and downs in this competition.
17:45But her persistence and winning personality has made her into a serious contender.
17:51Let's go!
17:52Anjali was a shining example of how sheer determination can get you what you want in life,
17:57which is what made this scandalous moment even more painful for her fans.
18:01After just missing out on the final two in Cycle 14,
18:04the Buffalo beauty was a strong competitor throughout the All-Stars series.
18:09She reached the final three once again before being suddenly disqualified in an awkward finale episode,
18:15leaving audiences confused.
18:17It turns out that after shooting was wrapped,
18:19our production team and the network learned information from Anjali
18:23that disqualifies her from the competition.
18:25It later emerged that Anjali had previously worked as an escort,
18:29going against a stipulation set out in the contract.
18:33So what does that mean?
18:34Anjali disagreed with the action taken and ended up suing the show for $3 million,
18:39claiming the show knew the information already,
18:41and only decided to disqualify her after she got the crown.
18:45You know what guys, we wish Anjali the best in all her future endeavors.
18:49Oh, absolutely.
18:50Number 5.
18:51Shandy cheated and confessed.
18:53Cycle 2.
18:54Ding!
18:55Hold on a second Shandy, you've got a boyfriend.
18:57The early ANTM season gave us some super scandalous moments,
19:01but this Cycle 2 incident was certainly the first of its kind.
19:05Shy and sensitive Shandy shocked audiences when she cheated on her long-term boyfriend
19:10with a sexy male model after a steamy night in the jacuzzi got out of hand.
19:15I feel like a part of me just got caught up in everything,
19:17like just caught up in the sexual tension,
19:20having really good-looking guys come over and then all getting into the jacuzzi.
19:24What was just as shocking, however,
19:25was how producers aired her heartbreaking phone call confession.
19:29What's wrong?
19:31I don't know how to start this.
19:34What'd you do?
19:35Fans winced watching Shandy fall apart as her boyfriend sobbed on the phone,
19:39and we wondered whether we really needed an accessible
19:42areas past to this girl's private and personal life at all.
19:52Number 4.
19:53The models trash their house.
19:55Cycle 10.
19:56We're in New York guys,
19:57I want to congratulate everybody that works here.
20:00The Cycle 10 girls certainly settled into their raucous celebrity lifestyle easily.
20:05This would have to be the nicest place I've ever been to.
20:08While the cycle was airing,
20:09it was reported that the models had caused $500,000 worth of damage
20:14to the swanky Tribeca loft they were living in during the competition.
20:18Welcome to New York ladies, follow your work to your new loft and you'll have cause to celebrate.
20:27According to an insider, the landlord complained of food stains on the $20,000 white drapes,
20:33holes in the ceiling and walls, a destroyed $15,000 chandelier, and a ruined Brazilian wood floor.
20:40To make matters worse, producers had apparently assured the landlord any damage would be minimal.
20:45The damage was never shown or ever mentioned on the show, and the matter was brushed under the
20:50carpet pretty swiftly by top model producers.
20:54Number three, Lisa D'Amato, Cycle 5.
20:57Everybody be looking at me like I'm crazy.
21:00Lisa went from peeing in a diaper at a photo shoot to winning the all-star season of top model.
21:06But what happened in between was a struggle for this Cycle 5 wild child.
21:11During her initial stint on the show, Lisa was known to enjoy a drink or two,
21:15and her manic behavior did not go unnoticed by her fellow competitors.
21:19To be honest, we're all a little scared of Lisa.
21:21Why don't you want to talk to me?
21:23She's gonna look like you're crazy, dude.
21:25After the show, Lisa struggled with substance use disorder
21:28and appeared on the third series of Celebrity Rehab with Dr. Drew.
21:32After being accused of being in denial about her problem by Dr. Drew,
21:36Lisa turned her life around and went on to be crowned winner of the all-star cycle.
21:41Talk about a redemption story.
21:43Everybody be taking themselves way too serious.
21:48Number 2.
21:49Tyra shouted at Tiffany.
21:50Cycle 4.
21:51I was rooting for you!
21:52We were all rooting for you!
21:54How dare you!
21:55Now a fully-fledged meme in its own right,
21:57the we were all rooting for you speech was the angriest we've ever seen Tyra on the show.
22:03After Tiffany laughed and joked her way through her goodbyes when being eliminated,
22:07Tyra called her back to berate her for not taking her place in the competition seriously.
22:12Tiffany, I'm extremely disappointed in you.
22:15This is a joke to you.
22:17Tiffany has since said that the iconic speech was actually way worse in reality,
22:21with Tyra telling Tiffany,
22:23you can go back to your house and sleep on your mattress on the floor with your baby.
22:27Speaking to BuzzFeed about Tyra in 2017, Tiffany said,
22:31I didn't think she cared, leaving the Mama Tyra image somewhat in tatters.
22:36Stop it!
22:39I have never in my life yelled at a girl like this!
22:43When my mother yells at this, it's because she loves me!
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23:00Number one, Renee always sentenced to 12 years in prison, cycle eight.
23:07So you describe yourself as a catty person, what does that mean?
23:09I'm not a complete bitch or anything like that, but if I have something to say, I'm gonna say it.
23:14I do want these girls to know that if they get in my way, I will plow them over.
23:18Cocky, competitive, and never afraid to speak her mind,
23:21Renee had a reputation on cycle eight for being the villain of the season.
23:25I am not a mean person.
23:27Well, you've been disrespectful to every single girl.
23:29And people have been disrespectful to me.
23:31With good reason, and I understand, and I back them all.
23:35She was a strong competitor, however, achieving a respectable third place,
23:38with a ton of potential for her future career.
23:41I have a lot on my shoulders right now, and I don't care if I make friends.
23:44It's not my main goal for being here is not to make friends.
23:47Unfortunately, debilitating substance use problems
23:50meant that her life took a turn for the worse after the show.
23:53Renee was arrested for multiple offenses, including drug possession,
23:57burglary, and fraud in 2013 after a six-hour standoff with police.
24:03I can't even remember what was happening then.
24:07That's how bad it was.
24:08Fans were shaken by her altered appearance in her prison interview,
24:12as well as her controversial revelation that the after-show support from Top Model
24:16was practically non-existent.
24:18Now that's definitely not so fierce.
24:21It's almost like a setup for failure.
24:23Did this list make you think differently about Top Model?
24:26Tell us in the comments.
24:28I couldn't see the runway.
24:30People wouldn't even tell me the number of steps leading up to the runway.
24:33I was really surprised.
24:43I couldn't see the fairway.
25:01The wind wasVO.
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