The Tyra Banks Netflix Lawsuit has taken another turn, with the streaming giant asking a judge to throw out the model’s defamation case over “Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model.” Banks sued Netflix in June, claiming the docuseries manipulated hours of interview footage to create a damaging portrayal of her. Netflix is now pushing back, arguing that Banks agreed to participate and gave filmmakers broad authority over how her interview could be edited.
Tyra Banks Netflix Lawsuit Faces Netflix’s Dismissal Push
In a filing obtained by TMZ, Netflix asked a judge Friday to dismiss Banks’ lawsuit, rejecting her claims that the “America’s Next Top Model” docuseries defamed her through editing and manipulation.
According to Netflix, the 52-year-old TV star voluntarily participated in the project and signed a release granting filmmakers broad editing rights. The company argues that her objections ultimately amount to a disagreement with how much of her interview appeared and how producers presented it.
Netflix characterized Banks’ allegations of “manipulation” and “surgical editing” as a “request for more airtime and an edit more to her liking.” The company’s attorneys also argued that a court shouldn’t “second-guess editorial judgments merely because an interview subject would have preferred different ones.” Netflix has requested a hearing on its motion to dismiss the case on Friday, October 30.
Netflix Defends How the ‘ANTM’ Docuseries Portrayed Banks
The streaming giant also stood behind “Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model” in a statement provided to TMZ, maintaining that Banks had an opportunity to tell her side of the story during her interview.
“Tyra Banks was given the opportunity to speak openly about her experience and the creators fairly presented her perspective alongside those of every other participant shown in this documentary. We stand behind ‘Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model’ and will continue to vigorously defend it.”
Banks’ lawsuit presents a very different account of the production process. According to legal documents obtained by TMZ in June, she sat for an interview lasting more than three hours, but approximately 16 minutes ultimately appeared in the project. Her lawsuit alleges that the footage was manipulated “to support a false and defamatory narrative.”
Banks specifically accused the producers of using “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.”
Tyra Banks Says the Documentary Created a Damaging Impression
The dispute centers partly on former “ANTM” contestant Shandi Sullivan, who accused the show’s production team of failing to protect her from a sexual assault by a guest and then turning her experience into an infidelity storyline.
During the Netflix documentary, Banks, who started her career at age 15, said she remembered Sullivan’s storyline but added, “It’s a little difficult for me to talk about production because that’s not my territory.” Banks claims she didn’t know Sullivan would participate in the docuseries or that Sullivan characterized her experience as sexual assault. Her lawsuit argues that the way Banks’ interview was presented created a damaging implication about what she knew.
“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 claims she didn’t receive access to the completed docuseries until February 15, 2026, one day before its Netflix premiere, when promotional efforts were already underway.
With Netflix now seeking dismissal and Banks standing behind her claims about how the documentary portrayed her, the next major development could come when the court considers the streaming giant’s motion.
