Tyra Banks has filed a lawsuit against Netflix, claiming she was defamed in the America's Next Top Model docuseries Reality Check.
According to Rolling Stone, Banks participated in a four-hour interview with the filmmakers to discuss ANTM's legacy. Only 16 minutes made the final cut.
The lawsuit alleges that Netflix editors reassembled her words "to support a false and defamatory narrative unrelated to what she actually expressed." The narrative claims that Banks knowingly allowed a contestant to be sexually assaulted on set, exploited that trauma for ratings, and then forgot about it.
"That narrative about Ms. Banks is a complete fabrication," the lawsuit states.
Banks participated in the documentary to discuss ANTM's troubled production history, where models have described a chaotic, manipulative on-set environment that allegedly ignored basic safety standards.
ANTM Season Two contestant Shandi Sullivan, whose storyline involved a cheating scandal she now characterizes as sexual assault, told Rolling Stone that Banks refuses to take responsibility. "How do you treat people as cash cows instead of humans?" Sullivan said. "It's messed up, no matter what year it is."
The lawsuit represents a direct confrontation between a major celebrity and a streaming platform over editorial manipulation. The outcome will test whether selective editing constitutes defamation.
