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Tyra Banks has filed a defamation lawsuit against Netflix and its directors docuseries Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Modelsaying that the producers cut many hours of interview footage to create fake news.
In a lawsuit filed Saturday in Los Angeles court, the actress who created and hosted America’s Next Top Model said she was questioned for three and a half hours, during which she took responsibility for controversial decisions on the show. The interviews were edited down to 16 minutes and edited “to support false and defamatory material unrelated to his statements,” the lawsuit said.
“Ms. Banks’ response ended in the locker room,” her attorneys wrote. “It was there, but viewers weren’t given a chance to see it.”
Banks is seeking damages in his lawsuit Netflixdirected by Daniel Sivan and Mor Loushy and EverWonder Studio. He is also seeking an injunction against the use of his image in connection with the docuseries’ music, released as an album.
Emails seeking comment were sent to representatives of the accused on Sunday.
America’s Next Top Model was launched in 2003 and ran for 24 seasons. The reality competition series has come under heavy scrutiny for allegations of body shaming, defamation of contestants and photo ops. Banks responded to these criticisms, admitting to “a nod to the old ANTM era” and “other choices”.
The lawsuit alleges that the producers of the Netflix docuseries used “intentional editing, intentional omissions, and continuous editing” to create a story that Banks allowed a contestant to be sexually assaulted on the show, used the contestant’s emotional trauma to elicit the interview, and then was able to recall the interview.
“Defendants engineered the Netflix series to make it appear as if Ms. Banks knew she was being questioned about sexual assault and was deliberately trying to avoid the topic,” the lawsuit said, arguing that Banks was not told – or asked – about the assault during the interview.
Banks’ attorneys wrote that they were not allowed to review the documents until one day before the February 16 release. According to the lawsuit, he was not asked to do a fact-check after his interview, and he was not given a chance to respond to the allegations made by others.
The lawyers contacted Netflix in March to request full access to the content their client requested. Netflix and EverWonder denied the request, according to the lawsuit. Since the release of the docuseries, public reactions have been “swift, brutal, and directed at Ms. Banks” — even SMiZE + DREAM, her ice cream shop in Sydney, Australia, has been reviewing the bombshell on Google, the lawsuit read.
The Associated Press sent an email seeking information from Banks’ attorneys and representatives on Sunday.
“Any further discussions regarding ANTM’s legacy — including what Ms. Banks planned — are now deadlocked by a lawsuit she has not been given an opportunity to respond to,” her attorneys wrote. “This lawsuit is the answer – especially after trying to resolve the matter directly with Netflix and the producers were rejected.”
