Tyra Banks Sues Netflix for Defamation Following 'America’s Next Top Model' Documentary

Tyra Banks ain't just serving looks ... she just filed a defamation lawsuit against Netflix following her participation in their "Reality Check: Inside America's Next Top Model" docuseries.

The legal docs, filed Saturday and obtained by TMZ, allege Netflix only used 16 minutes from her over 3-hour interview with them and manipulated it "to support a false and defamatory narrative."

The lawsuit accuses producers of constructing a false narrative about Tyra through "selective editing, deliberate omission, and surgical manipulation of continuous footage -- including that Ms. Banks knowingly allowed a contestant to be sexually assaulted on her show, exploited that contestant's trauma for ratings, and then could not even remember it when asked."

ICYMI, Cycle 2 contestant Shandi Sullivan accused the "America's Next Top Model" production team of failing to protect her from a sexual assault by a guest on the show, and then ignoring the assault and molding it into a humiliating infidelity storyline. During the doc, Tyra said she remembered Shandi's storyline but explained, "It's a little difficult for me to talk about production because that's not my territory."

But in the lawsuit, Tyra argues she had no idea Shandi was participating in the docuseries and that she labeled her experience as a sexual assault. The lawsuit slams, "The implication is devastating and deliberate: that Tyra Banks cannot even remember the story of the woman who was assaulted on her show."

Banks also says she didn't get access to the completed docuseries until Feb. 15, 2026 -- just one day before it premiered on Netflix. By that point, she claims trailers, promotional materials, and press outreach were already underway.

Beyond the documentary itself, Banks is also taking issue with a soundtrack tied to the project. She alleges Netflix used her image on the cover art without authorization, creating the false impression she endorsed the release