Dark Side of Reality TV Episode 10 - America's Next Top Model
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00:00I constantly have people coming up to me asking me how can they get into the field of modeling.
00:10It's fierce and chic.
00:13America's Next Top Model is a cultural phenomenon.
00:16Angelique.
00:17Thank you so much.
00:19The best way for me to get into the industry is to try out for the show.
00:23Vera.
00:24It was like the ultimate prize.
00:26Lisa.
00:27It would just catapult my career even more.
00:29Oh, the life, ugh.
00:32Led by the Queen of Modeling, Tyra Banks, the nationwide search for the runway's next
00:37superstar offers a straight shot to fame and fortune.
00:42When you come in this room, in my house, you respect my judges.
00:48Just as long as you can take the heat.
00:50I love my hair.
00:51I look like a boy.
00:52Cut her hair.
00:53No, wait, wait, wait.
00:54They would be reprimanded if they whined too much about their look.
00:59You need to give us what we're looking for.
01:01You're a little perhaps nervous about your body.
01:04It was really uncomfortable.
01:05I was rooting for you.
01:06We were all rooting for you.
01:07How dare you?
01:08I was crying so hard they had to turn the cameras off.
01:11I started to realize that this was not a real modeling competition.
01:15It was like psychological warfare.
01:18And even if you win, you still lose.
01:23This was supposed to change my life for the better.
01:26I was so broke after the show.
01:29They don't care if you live or die.
01:32She was a victim and they re-victimized her.
01:34I was at my lowest.
01:35Excuse me.
01:36America's Next Top Model squashed my dreams.
01:41If you don't like what you see, change the channel.
01:55Of all the women to have ever strutted down the catwalk, Tyra Banks is one of the most
02:00iconic.
02:01Everybody knew her as a supermodel.
02:04She was the first black woman to be on the cover of Sports Illustrated and she became
02:10a Victoria's Secret angel.
02:13She was that girl in the 90s and early 2000s who really rose to incredible heights of success
02:19and fame.
02:21After conquering the modeling world, in 2003, she sets her sights on building a media empire.
02:29She empowered herself to look beyond her image because she always wanted to be a film and
02:34TV producer.
02:36Banks takes her 15 years experience in the modeling industry and infuses it with elements
02:41of the most popular reality shows of the time to come up with something brand new.
02:47Kelly Clarkson.
02:50As Tyra explains it, she goes, what if I take American Idol?
02:58And there's this other TV show called The Real World that just followed people around.
03:00What if I combine the two?
03:01What if models were followed around in the real world and they all live together in a
03:06modeling competition?
03:08America's Next Top Model is a bit of a hybrid.
03:11It's like a candid show.
03:13It's like Big Brother in that regard.
03:15Our winner is Sarah.
03:16But it's also a bit like Survivor.
03:18There are challenges that people have to win.
03:20It's like five different reality shows in one.
03:23I want to make a top model in eight weeks.
03:25And I want to chart the entire process and show America how it happens.
03:30Tyra promised that this was an earnest search for somebody who would win a modeling competition
03:37with a fabulous career almost guaranteed afterward.
03:42To help bring her ambitious idea to life, Tyra recruits Ken Mock, who's made a name
03:47for himself as a reality format guru.
03:52Because I created Making the Band and I created Tough Enough, I kind of became this guy known
03:57for doing those reality shows where there's a real prize at the end.
04:02You get to be a wrestler and you get to become, you know, this band or a singer or whatever.
04:07Ken Mock, it was all about the ratings.
04:09It was all about wanting the audience to be able to talk about the show the next day.
04:14All right, ladies.
04:16With Mock pulling the strings and Tyra bringing her star power to the screen.
04:20I have a panel of judges here that I totally respect.
04:23They recruit an all-star cast of judges who aren't afraid of giving honest opinions.
04:29We have Miss Janice Dickinson.
04:30Oh, this is a nice chair.
04:36It's really bad.
04:37I'm sorry.
04:38I can't even look at it.
04:39It's that bad.
04:41My name is Janice Dickinson, and I served as a judge on America's Next Top Model for
04:46four cycles.
04:49Tyra, Ken Mock, the producer, wanted me to emulate Simon Cowell on American Idol.
04:57My job is to be as brutally honest as possible.
05:01This photograph looks like the batteries died in her vibrator.
05:06I know what works in the industry outside of their sphere.
05:10America's Next Top Model is Adrienne.
05:13Get her.
05:15Congratulations.
05:16The first season, or cycle, airs in May of 2003 and immediately becomes a record-breaking
05:23show for the UPN network, averaging three million viewers a week.
05:28From there, it blows up, as in each new cycle, thousands of aspiring models are drawn in
05:34by the huge prize on offer.
05:37This is a modeling contract with one of the top modeling agencies in the world, a six-page
05:42spread and a cover of a magazine, and a $100,000 contract with CoverGirl Cosmetic.
05:50Being on the cover of a magazine sounded fun, and obviously I wanted the money.
05:56Let's be honest.
05:57Hi.
05:58Hi.
05:59Hi.
06:00My name is Lisa D'Amato, and I was a modeling contestant on cycle five and cycle 17 All
06:06Stars of America's Next Top Model.
06:09I had traveled the world.
06:11I had modeled in Milan, New York, Australia at this time.
06:14I thought, going on the show, that I had virtually nothing to lose.
06:20If anything, it would just catapult my career even more.
06:27My name is Anjalee Preston, and I was on cycles 12, 14, and 17 of America's Next Top Model.
06:34I always wanted to be a model, but I don't have a portfolio.
06:39I don't have any modeling pictures, so I'm thinking the best way for me to get into the
06:44industry and to be a model is to try out for the show.
06:47Yeah.
06:48I have so many questions.
06:49I have so many questions.
06:50I have so many questions.
06:53My name is Sarah Hartshorn, and I was a contestant on cycle nine of America's Next Top Model.
06:59I watched the show with my friend, and he was like, I really think you should try out
07:03for this show.
07:05And I was like, no, I'm not thin.
07:06And he was like, no, no, you're pretty, and you're weird, and I think that they would
07:11pick you.
07:12And I was like, I don't think so.
07:13Wait, you think I'm pretty?
07:15I see a girl that could be a plus-size model, but is on the thinner side of that.
07:20I think everybody should just work with what they got.
07:22And if it's a lot, that's cool.
07:23Yeah.
07:24I think you look amazing.
07:26You're having an earring moment, too.
07:27I know.
07:28I feel like when you're bald, you have to.
07:30I would literally just look like a mannequin at Forever 21, so I was like, I have to put
07:33something on my ear.
07:34I love earrings.
07:35My name is Gina Turner, and I was a contestant on the final cycle of America's Next Top
07:40Model.
07:41I happened to be watching, and at the end of one of the episodes, there was just a typical
07:46black screen, and it said, want to be on America's Next Top Model?
07:49That put the bug in my ear of like, maybe you should try.
07:52I'll be on America's Next Top Model with Tyra if you want.
07:55Oh!
07:56Hi, Tyra!
07:57This is me.
07:59The audition process was insane.
08:04They filed between 100 and 200 girls into this ballroom, and they cram us in a single
08:10file line.
08:11And the thing that they kept repeating, and they kept saying with nose to the back of
08:14the head, nose to the back of the head, your nose should be touching the head of the girl
08:18in front of you.
08:19And so we all had to, as a centipede, step forward, out of our shoes.
08:24And I remember looking down and being like, I am the only one that has tits that make
08:27that impossible.
08:28What do I do?
08:29Would you please put on the blindfolds that we have given you?
08:32The 30 who make it to the next stage...
08:34Welcome to America's Next Top Model.
08:37Then get a chance to woo the judges, and of course, Tyra herself.
08:42You guys have made my fierce cage.
08:46I looked up to Tyra so much.
08:48I was so happy that this woman that, you know, I admired since a child, she knows who I am.
08:56She picked me to come on her show.
08:59Well, hello, ladies.
09:01Hi, Tyra.
09:03To see her in front of me was probably one of the cooler moments in my life.
09:08I don't remember meeting her.
09:10It was totally a fugue state.
09:13Okay, what happened?
09:14Go ahead, tell us.
09:15What happened to my nose?
09:16I had balled up a friggin' straw wrapper and shoved it up my nose, accordion it, and then
09:22pull it out.
09:23Oh, I'm...
09:24That's...
09:25I remember getting off the stage and being like, what did I say?
09:29What did I just do?
09:32Only half make the next cut.
09:34Sarah.
09:35Gina.
09:36Anjalee.
09:37Thank you so much.
09:40Lisa.
09:41Oh, my God.
09:43The chosen few move into the model house.
09:46It'll be home for the next eight weeks, or as long as they last.
09:49Y'all are in.
09:50They got it.
09:54Everyone starts running.
09:55Oh, my God.
09:58I just remember being like, I've never seen a house like this anywhere.
10:02We were so excited.
10:04It was like the ultimate prize.
10:05Oh, my God.
10:07Penthouse Suites and Paris and Milan.
10:10Just get my hair and makeup done.
10:12Oh, the life.
10:13Ugh.
10:14Tyra, ma'am.
10:15Don't bitch and moan about this hairy situation.
10:19There's no turning back now, as Tyra calls in to tell them what comes next.
10:23Good morning, ladies.
10:25It's time to capture the new you for the world to see.
10:29Makeovers, also known as tie overs.
10:32Top model is iconic for makeovers.
10:35Well, I line the girls up, line all the pictures up, and I go one by one and try to decide
10:40what would be the best makeover to make them edgy, take them, you know, over the edge.
10:45She would look at a girl who was kind of ordinary and go, okay, well, how about if
10:48we cut her hair like this?
10:50How about if we give her blonde hair?
10:51How about if we do this?
10:52How about if we do that?
10:54They gave me a short, dirty blonde short bob, and I just loved it.
10:59You got what every girl wants.
11:01Yo.
11:02Yo, I feel like Tyra.
11:04I had me a long, gorgeous blonde weave.
11:08So, are you ready?
11:09Yeah.
11:10We're cutting it all off.
11:11They cut all my hair off, and I definitely think they thought I was going to cry because
11:14I had, like, homeschool long hair.
11:17I loved it, and I was super excited, and then they asked if I felt like a man.
11:21You know, was I afraid that being a plus-size model with short hair would make me look fatter?
11:25And I had never thought that maybe I would look fatter with short hair.
11:29I do now.
11:30We have to cut it off real short like Halle Berry, girl.
11:33Yeah.
11:34I love my hair.
11:35I just don't feel like myself.
11:36I look like a boy.
11:37No, wait.
11:38Wait, wait, wait.
11:39If the girls did get a haircut that they weren't happy with, they had to learn how
11:45to work with their angles because they might get booked on a job where a client says, you
11:49know what, honey?
11:50I'm going to pay you 100 grand, but I'm going to cut off all your hair.
11:52You ready?
11:53No.
11:54Come on.
11:55No.
11:56There wasn't anyone taking the time to explain, like, what's happening, and it was really
12:01uncomfortable.
12:02I've never had, like, a net sewn to my head before.
12:04She stabbed me in the head with a needle all day.
12:07It's okay.
12:09Are you ready?
12:10We know what would look good on your face, so there shouldn't be any tears.
12:13Most of the girls would get so emotional and teary, like, oh, my God, I don't want to cut
12:16off my hair.
12:17Oh, my God.
12:18Don't do this.
12:19So you're not ready to cut your hair?
12:20No.
12:21You know, I really don't have time for this today.
12:22You just got to leave my side.
12:25They would be reprimanded if they whined too much about their look.
12:29They had to learn the word acceptance very quickly.
12:32But for one model, it's not that simple.
12:36Gina, that wig that you have, you're going to have to say goodbye to her.
12:40I wasn't ready for them to touch me with a razor.
12:43You need to give us what we're looking for, and if you don't, you're out.
12:57Nobody's crying unless he's in gear.
12:59I don't think there needs to be drama.
13:01It makes you burn.
13:02The girls are in mid-makeover, and Tyra's word is law.
13:06I want to see the jaw, baby, so the hair has to be cut.
13:09But in Gina Turner's case, it strikes a traumatic chord.
13:13What makes you interesting, special, different?
13:14I have a disease called alopecia universalis.
13:17So it's autoimmune.
13:18It attacks my hair follicles, and my hair dies out.
13:21It's hard to talk about.
13:23I started losing my hair around eight years old.
13:25I had no idea it was alopecia at the time.
13:27To be a girl and not have hair, and you see how people start treating you differently
13:31and what people say, is really intense.
13:34You ready?
13:35They're going to start the process.
13:36I'll hold your hand if you want me to.
13:39Producers pressure Gina to confront her alopecia on camera
13:43by shaving off what little hair she has to create her signature look.
13:50I was crying so hard they had to turn the cameras off.
13:53I just kept breaking out, and I just wasn't ready for it.
13:57I wouldn't even run down my driveway to the mailbox to pick up the mail
14:00if I didn't have my hair on.
14:01Like, I really wasn't ready for it to be shaven like that on TV.
14:05And then to be told, like, walk around like that,
14:08and you have to believe it's beautiful.
14:10What if I didn't?
14:11I obviously didn't think it was beautiful.
14:12I was covering it up with wigs.
14:15With Gina, before she signed up to be America's Next Top Model,
14:17she knew that this was her angle,
14:19that this would be the way that she would stand out.
14:22There's no way in the world that she would have gone on to this show
14:25not knowing that that was going to be a strong point for her.
14:29Some of the girls were poked at the traumas, and that's television.
14:33Finding that insecure thing that the model has
14:36and enhancing it and making the model just stand there,
14:39I guess like a marine until he's finally broken.
14:42Just relax. Just like, I'm afraid of heights, girl.
14:46Oh, my God.
14:47It's not just their physical insecurities that are being exploited.
14:51Please take me down.
14:53The contestants then move on to the modeling challenges,
14:56where production forces them to confront their biggest fears and phobias.
15:00I hate heights.
15:01That's like the only thing I said that I'm afraid of is heights.
15:04When we are creating the content,
15:06there might be a girl who might be scared of heights.
15:08You'll be wearing these.
15:11And you will also be wearing this.
15:14Or there might be someone who's scared of spiders.
15:16So we add those elements of fear into the photo shoot to create story.
15:22They know how you are going to react to every single scenario presented to you,
15:27whether you're going to fight or you're going to flight.
15:30During the casting process, they asked me,
15:34what was one of the most traumatizing experiences that you've ever had?
15:40At the time, my grandpa had just passed.
15:43And at my grandpa's funeral,
15:45my grandma had to get up in the middle of the ceremony and go to the bathroom.
15:50I went in there to check on her.
15:52She had like explosive diarrhea.
15:57And it was all over the floor.
15:59It was all over her dress.
16:01She's getting poop on my clothes.
16:08It's so sad.
16:12Sorry.
16:15And I told Top Model this story
16:18probably exactly the same way I'm telling you.
16:21Lisa's going to go first.
16:23Come on, Lisa!
16:25All the way down.
16:26All right.
16:27Way to get dirty, girl.
16:28And they decide to cover us in manure
16:31and do these challenges where we just smell like shit.
16:34And they lock us in a limo, make us sit in it for four hours.
16:39And there is an exact moment that actually made it on air
16:43where I'm just sitting there like looking off
16:45because I'm like, holy shit, they got this from my interview.
16:50Like they did this based on the story that I told them.
16:54There's no way in hell that they just came up with this.
16:59From day one, the cast are interviewed relentlessly.
17:02And nothing is off limits.
17:05The producers of the show would ask me about my body all the time.
17:08And they would ask me how I felt about it
17:10and how I felt about the fact that it was different than the other girls.
17:13Am I too small? Am I like too big? I don't know.
17:15I just kind of feel like I'm just wrong sometimes.
17:17And so it was like, how do I like steal myself
17:23to let this be the thing that we talk about in every interview?
17:28They used all of your trauma during interviews
17:32to get a reaction out of you, an emotional reaction.
17:36And then they switch the topic.
17:39Anytime you see me crying on the phone,
17:41it's because they ask me,
17:43do you feel the same way like you did
17:45when your mom told you to kill yourself?
17:48And they'd be like, let's change the subject.
17:50As you're crying, tell me,
17:52how are you going to walk into this photo shoot?
17:54With confidence, right?
17:55And you're like, yeah, I'm going to walk in with confidence.
18:00I think I was in an interview room for like almost seven hours,
18:03like by myself with three people just like this.
18:07But I had the interviewer telling me
18:09I was begging her to stop asking me questions
18:11about being suicidal.
18:12They ended up using the response of me crying,
18:14saying I don't want to talk about it anymore
18:16as my response for losing the competition.
18:19I don't want to talk about it anymore.
18:21And that's not at all what happened.
18:24Everybody behind the scenes involved with this show
18:28structurally built opportunities
18:31to poke and poke and poke
18:33at people's worst moments in their lives
18:36just to make them cry or just to make them yell
18:39or scream or be angry or seem confused.
18:43It's deeply irresponsible and also sadistic.
18:48Between the challenges and interrogation-style interviews,
18:52the women are physically and emotionally exhausted.
18:56Competition reality shows in the early aughts were tough.
18:59It was a unique time in that world
19:02because it was like the Wild West.
19:04And, you know, we weren't paid.
19:06It was unpaid labor.
19:08We worked until 3, 4 in the morning.
19:10We were being subject to a new world of entertainment
19:15that was cheap.
19:17There's never a moment away from the cameras,
19:19not even at the model house.
19:22There really wasn't anywhere that was private.
19:25There was mics everywhere,
19:27whether they were on top of cupboards,
19:29tucked behind toilet seats, behind your pillowcase.
19:32Like, you name it, there was a mic somewhere.
19:38The shower had, like, a wall
19:40that came up to, like, just below our nipples.
19:45Like, or just maybe just above,
19:47but, like, not if we reached over our head.
19:49You know what I mean?
19:50And they were like,
19:51we won't film you if you are alone in the shower
19:53or in the bathroom,
19:54but if anyone else is in there, we will film you.
19:57Also, you guys should totally shower together.
20:00It's like a sorority house for models,
20:02right down to their bad diet.
20:07They didn't give you enough per diem to feed yourself.
20:10A lot of the girls were just living off of cereal
20:12or Top Ramen.
20:14Also, you know, these girls who don't know how to cook
20:16are in a kitchen,
20:17so it was a lot of Hot Pockets,
20:19it was a lot of fish sticks,
20:21a lot of, like, oven fries.
20:23We weren't eating super well.
20:26And when you're hungry, you get angry,
20:28and then you lash out.
20:35They wanted us to fight
20:36because they wanted to see what you're like at your worst.
20:42Yeah, we were irritable.
20:43We were snappy.
20:45That was a concerted effort to keep us off kilter.
20:49It got to the point where I was like,
20:50I'll just have a glass of wine.
20:52But guess what?
20:53Now this glass of wine is now two glasses of wine,
20:55and I forgot that I didn't have breakfast.
20:57And wait, did I even have lunch?
20:59And no, and now I'm, like, kind of drunk.
21:05The result is exactly what producers want.
21:08Y'all fake as hell.
21:09Don't say that!
21:10This is a hellhole.
21:12Oh my God.
21:13Tell them it's an emergency.
21:14I started to realize that this show
21:16was not a real modeling competition.
21:18You're a stupid bitch.
21:20You wanna know me?
21:21You wanna know me?
21:22No, f**k y'all, f**k all y'all.
21:24It was like psychological warfare.
21:33You have to tell them.
21:34I'm being aggressive.
21:36I'm not being aggressive.
21:38Yeah, you are.
21:40The top model cast are tired, hungry,
21:42and on their last nerve.
21:44But they have to pull themselves together
21:47for the most grueling event of all,
21:49Judgment Day.
21:52We would go to eliminations,
21:54which were the longest, the hardest days.
21:56The day was so long.
21:57It was so long.
21:58We'd been up since, like, 5 or 6 a.m.
22:00I mean, the days would sometimes go
22:02until, like, 3 a.m.
22:03They had us standing in heels
22:05for hours and hours and hours on end
22:07in a really hot production room.
22:09No fans, no A.C.
22:11Lights blasting on us.
22:12Like, we weren't allowed to sit down.
22:14I didn't feel that you embraced me.
22:17Oh my God.
22:20A girl fainted every week.
22:22They warned us.
22:23They were like,
22:24Don't lock your knees.
22:25I was like,
22:26These skinny bitches,
22:27they're fainting.
22:28And then 10 hours later,
22:29I was like,
22:30I'm fainting.
22:32In Sarah's case,
22:33the physical toll the show has exacted
22:35becomes her Achilles' heel
22:37when she's brought to face the judges.
22:40Sarah.
22:41You seem to have lost quite a bit of weight
22:42since the beginning of this opposition.
22:44A couple people have said that,
22:45and it happened.
22:46It seems like it.
22:47Perhaps it's the way you're dressing has changed.
22:49The reason that I was losing weight
22:51was A, that I was stressed,
22:52but also that I was trying to save money
22:54because we weren't getting paid.
22:56And so I was trying to only eat
22:58very little and very cheap food.
23:02Congratulations.
23:07She was brought into the competition
23:08as a plus-size model.
23:10To become not a plus-size model
23:12within the span of the competition
23:14is really difficult to then compete
23:16You can't just say you're a plus-size model
23:18and be not.
23:19You need to stay strong.
23:20I know it hurts.
23:21I know it hurts so bad.
23:23Honestly, like,
23:24I was super sad that I got eliminated
23:26and I did cry a lot.
23:28I was so surprised
23:30that I was crying so much
23:32and I was so surprised at myself
23:34that I was feeling all these feelings
23:36and I didn't really know what they were about.
23:38I don't know what I feel,
23:39but I feel a lot of it.
23:40Some of the judges are put off by your fire.
23:43Some of them think it's cocky.
23:45One by one, the women are picked apart
23:48and eventually eliminated.
23:50I was shocked.
23:52I was really disappointed.
23:54I knew that I, like,
23:55did such an amazing job
23:57that I just knew it was bullshit.
24:00My season was the only one,
24:02the only season they have a bald girl
24:04with no hair.
24:05The winner will receive $100,000
24:07thanks to Pantene.
24:09Congratulations.
24:11My season's the only one
24:12that a hair company is the sponsor.
24:14There's no way.
24:15You've come so far.
24:17Oh, I was so disappointed
24:19when I got eliminated.
24:20Oh, I cried like a baby.
24:21Always crying.
24:22Goodness gracious.
24:23Oh, so emotional.
24:25Oh, trust me.
24:26You will be seeing me again.
24:27Know that.
24:28Okay.
24:29Their one solace after being cut
24:31is that the exposure should help
24:33their modeling careers.
24:35I was like,
24:36you made it to the second last episode.
24:38Good job, Ang.
24:39Like, you did good.
24:40Now you got your portfolio.
24:42Just, you know,
24:43like, hit the ground running.
24:46No, no, no.
24:47From glasses, young lady.
24:49It turns out,
24:50the opposite is true.
24:52Lisa, alcoholic,
24:54and jailed up.
24:55Alcoholic and insane, though.
24:56Yeah.
24:57Well, Lisa's insane anyway.
24:58I was portrayed as
24:59an alcoholic villain.
25:01You're basically presenting yourself
25:03like a moron, okay?
25:05And what are you doing,
25:06alcoholic bitch?
25:07People on the street
25:09were calling me an alcoholic bitch.
25:12I was devastated.
25:15I don't really have the time
25:17to think about what
25:18the other girls are doing.
25:19I don't care about anything else
25:21but myself.
25:22I feel like they tried
25:23to make me the villain.
25:24That was not at all
25:25what I experienced in person.
25:27That girl's not me at all.
25:28Like, the girl that they've
25:29tried to make me out,
25:30it's not me at all.
25:34Some girls who got bad edits
25:36had a really hard time
25:37signing with agencies,
25:38or even if they got with
25:40an agency,
25:41the clients weren't interested
25:43in working with them.
25:46One agent,
25:47he looked at my top model
25:48portfolio and said,
25:50Huh.
25:52Like, how dare you come here
25:53with this bullshit?
25:56A model's call sheet,
25:57or look books,
25:58are natural and raw.
26:01Sometimes the girl's
26:02covering their breasts,
26:03you know, in some of these
26:04very, very quiet moments.
26:07That would work on television.
26:10Quiet moments.
26:11Say yawn, change the channel.
26:14It affected my actual career.
26:17One agency told me
26:18that they do not
26:19affiliate themselves with
26:20America's Next Top Model
26:21contestants because it is
26:22really hard for brands
26:23and clients to take
26:24that model seriously
26:25because of the affiliation
26:26of the show.
26:27I could not get signed
26:28to an agency
26:29to save my life.
26:31I was so broke
26:32after the show.
26:33I didn't think that the show
26:34was going to make me rich,
26:35but I sure as shit
26:36didn't think it was going
26:37to make me broke.
26:38America's Next Top Model
26:39fucking squashed my dreams.
26:42Made everybody
26:43around the globe hate me.
26:45Also made me
26:46hate myself for years.
26:50When they come off the show,
26:51we don't give a shit.
26:52We don't care what they do.
26:53They get on with their life.
26:54We get on to the next episode.
26:55So there is no follow-up
26:57and there is really
26:58no care factor,
26:59I guess,
27:00from the executive team
27:02or from the network
27:04to follow up with these girls
27:05to see how their careers
27:06are going.
27:07They don't care if you
27:08live or die.
27:10Afterwards,
27:11they don't care.
27:20America's Next
27:22Top
27:23Model
27:24is
27:25Britney!
27:27After 16 cycles,
27:28America's Next Top Model
27:30has become a staple
27:31on the CW,
27:32bringing in millions
27:33of viewers every week.
27:35But for many of the women,
27:37being on the show
27:38has done nothing
27:39for their careers,
27:40forcing them to move on.
27:44I knew that I wasn't
27:45going to be booked.
27:47My dreams are kind of over,
27:48but music is different,
27:50so maybe I can just
27:51catapult my career
27:52in this direction
27:53instead of acting
27:54and modeling.
27:59I was touring.
28:00I was doing music.
28:01I'm making amazing choices
28:03in my life.
28:04I've found a new
28:05sense of self.
28:07And then Top Model
28:09comes knocking at the door.
28:11There were rumors
28:12that an all-star cycle
28:13was happening,
28:14and a producer reached out
28:15to me via email.
28:16I was like,
28:17hey, Anjali,
28:18we're thinking about
28:19having a Top Model
28:20all-star cycle.
28:21We are putting the girl
28:22through some fierce challenges
28:23to take their careers
28:24to a whole new level.
28:26They told me that
28:27this competition
28:28isn't just a modeling competition.
28:30They were going to focus
28:31more on our brand.
28:32We were going to be able
28:33to showcase our talents.
28:35Completely different format.
28:37You guys are going to
28:38co-write your own song
28:39and star in your
28:40very own music video.
28:42It's for music.
28:43It's for runway.
28:44It's for modeling.
28:45Lisa, literally,
28:46if there was a competition
28:47that was made for you,
28:49this is it.
28:50I welcome this.
28:51It can't get any worse
28:53than where I just came from,
28:54so if I don't win,
28:56I can take this.
28:58And because I'm ganged up
28:59a little bit more now,
29:01I know how to pivot
29:02and try to work it
29:04in my favor this time.
29:06I was in the mental head space
29:08where I was so strong.
29:09I thought this would be
29:10a great way on an international
29:12syndicated television show
29:14to rebrand myself
29:15as who I really am.
29:17But I have to be really careful
29:18when I film.
29:19And I knew their tricks,
29:20and so if any time I was ready,
29:22this was the time I was ready.
29:24I went through
29:25all the past cycles
29:26and brought back your favorite.
29:292011's Cycle 17 All-Stars
29:32brings together 14 models
29:34from past seasons
29:35to compete in the ultimate showdown.
29:39All-Stars for me
29:40was the best cycle.
29:42We got girls
29:43who had certain personalities
29:44who should have won,
29:46who didn't win,
29:47who acted like this,
29:48who looked like that,
29:49who were kooky.
29:51As the contest ramps up,
29:53one competitor
29:54is outshining the rest.
29:56Angelini has evolved so much.
29:59I've got to agree with you, Andre.
30:00Angelini,
30:01she's totally blowing my socks off.
30:03Angelini Preston
30:04was the girl
30:05who stood out the most
30:06to be the winner of All-Stars.
30:09Yeah, that's it there, good.
30:11She walked onto camera,
30:12she had a certain esque
30:14and a certain way about her.
30:16You are knocking it out.
30:18She held herself
30:19in a strong model-like manner,
30:21and how she acted
30:23was someone that, you know,
30:25was going to win
30:26that cycle of
30:27America's Next Top Model.
30:29Sure enough,
30:30Angelini is victorious.
30:33I won
30:34America's Next Top Model
30:35Cycle 17.
30:36Me, Angelini from Buffalo,
30:38I won.
30:39I was screaming,
30:41I was so excited,
30:42I was so happy,
30:44I just could not believe it.
30:47But viewers never get to see
30:48her big finale,
30:50as after the show wraps,
30:51there's a problem.
30:53I get a phone call,
30:55can you come down to the city,
30:56to New York City?
30:57We want to talk about
30:58sponsorships,
30:59since you won the
31:00CoverGirl contract.
31:01I said, okay, great.
31:03So, I get there
31:04and see the show's psychiatrist,
31:06the attorney,
31:07and one of the
31:08executive producers,
31:09Laura Fust Silva.
31:11So I'm like,
31:12okay, alright,
31:14sponsorships, okay,
31:15everyone's professional,
31:16but I'm like,
31:17why is the psychiatrist here,
31:18like, if we're talking
31:19about sponsorships?
31:21So, Laura's like,
31:23we can't air you as the winner.
31:26I'm like,
31:28why?
31:30And she's like,
31:31we just,
31:32we just can't air you
31:33as the winner.
31:35Oh my gosh,
31:37it was just,
31:38I can't even describe
31:40the feeling,
31:41because it just,
31:42anger,
31:43sadness,
31:44confusion,
31:46WTF.
31:50I was pulled into a meeting
31:51by Tyra
31:52and three other executives
31:54that no one else
31:55to know about.
31:56And I was like,
31:57gosh, what's going on here?
31:58Like, what's happening?
31:59And I was told
32:01that after the first episode
32:02went to air
32:03that Anjalee
32:04had spoken to someone
32:05on social media
32:06and she had announced
32:07that she had won
32:08America's Next Top Model.
32:09We couldn't have
32:10the whole world
32:11knowing on episode one
32:13that the winner was Anjalee,
32:15because why would the audience
32:16want to tune in
32:17for another 12 or 13 episodes
32:18when they already knew
32:19who the winner was
32:20in episode one?
32:26I get a call
32:27from a producer of the show
32:29and they said that
32:31there's going to be a reshoot
32:32and there's going to be
32:33a new winner
32:34of the All Stars.
32:36America's Next Top Model
32:39is
32:41Lisa.
32:42It was like I was on Cloud Nine.
32:45That's crazy!
32:47It's absolutely crazy.
32:50I felt like the world
32:51was finally doing
32:52something nice for me.
32:55Anjalee's disqualification
32:56is also made public
32:57on the revised finale
32:59to explain
33:00her sudden disappearance.
33:02It turns out that
33:03after shooting was wrapped
33:04our production team
33:05and the network
33:06learned information
33:07from Anjalee
33:08that disqualifies her
33:09from the competition.
33:11But they never provide
33:12an official reason
33:13leading to an internet frenzy
33:15about what went down.
33:18Comments I saw
33:19all types of crazy stuff.
33:21Oh, she was pregnant
33:22and didn't disclose
33:23that she was pregnant.
33:24Oh, she told that
33:25she was the winner
33:26and that's why they had
33:27to disqualify her.
33:28I remember seeing
33:29one tweet
33:30that really stuck out to me.
33:32The tweet was the guy
33:33and he said
33:34he knew someone
33:35who worked closely
33:36on the show
33:37and he can confirm
33:38that it was
33:39none of those things.
33:41With her title
33:42taken away from her
33:43Anjalee decides
33:44to file a lawsuit
33:46in which a very
33:47different story emerges.
33:49Four years earlier
33:50after appearing
33:51on Cycle 14
33:53Anjalee is struggling.
33:57After Cycle 14
33:58stopped filming
33:59I'm living in Queens
34:01and this guy pulls up
34:02in the car
34:03and he's like
34:04hey, you know
34:05what's your name
34:06blah, blah, blah
34:07and I was like
34:08oh my God, he's cute.
34:09Gave him my number
34:11and I'm just like
34:13I'm a struggling model
34:14right now like
34:15I'm not making any money
34:16and he's like well
34:17I know how you
34:18can make some money
34:19you know like my girls
34:20like they
34:21they just go on dates
34:23The plan was just
34:24get some money
34:25so I could be on my own
34:26and then continue
34:27to focus on modeling
34:29and it just
34:31it just got like
34:33out of, like
34:34out of control.
34:38It was basically
34:39being sex trafficked.
34:42I don't know
34:43if it's cause I'm
34:45whew, excuse me.
34:47Hmm.
34:49Do you have a tissue?
34:50I'm sorry.
34:52You know I just
34:53went on this
34:54modeling odyssey right
34:57and this was supposed to
35:00change my life
35:02for the better
35:03and then I found myself
35:06in a situation where
35:07I was
35:09where I was at my lowest.
35:12Anjali claims
35:13because of her
35:16Anjali claims
35:17producers knew her story
35:18before asking her
35:20to return for All Stars.
35:22Anjali herself
35:23made it very clear
35:25what she had done
35:27in the past
35:28on the All Star show
35:29during filming.
35:31So we all kind of knew.
35:34And Lisa alleges
35:35executive producer
35:36Ken Mock
35:37alludes to this
35:38rather than the
35:39social media posting
35:40as the reason
35:41for Anjali's disqualification.
35:44Before the reshoot
35:45Ken Mock said to us
35:47we are disqualifying Anjali
35:50because of her past.
35:53And if you guys
35:54say a word
35:56just know
35:57that you'll be in
35:58serious legal trouble.
36:08The rumor mill
36:09has been swirling
36:10as to why Anjali
36:11was disqualified
36:12from top model
36:13All Stars.
36:14But once she goes
36:15public with her story
36:16the media runs with it.
36:20I don't really know
36:21the truth.
36:22I know that there's
36:23a lot of rumors
36:24and confusion
36:25but it seems like
36:26she won
36:27All Stars
36:28and they took it away
36:30because she had been
36:31an escort.
36:32Which is just a weird
36:33why would they care
36:34about that?
36:36She performs
36:37well enough to win
36:38when they can't
36:39allow her to win
36:40because of the sex work
36:41that they knew she did.
36:43She was a victim
36:44and they re-victimized her.
36:47You know
36:48the simplest answer is
36:49that's a cowardly thing.
36:50On the other hand
36:51I think it's important
36:52to contextualize
36:53America's Next Top Model
36:54as a show
36:55that is airing
36:56on network television
36:57with a very specific demographic
36:59with advertisers
37:01that the show
37:02absolutely needs
37:03in order to keep running.
37:04Final three
37:05we are the finalists.
37:07During the final episode
37:08of All Stars
37:09the women compete
37:10for a chance
37:11to appear
37:12in a major campaign
37:13for CoverGirl.
37:14The show's biggest sponsor
37:15for the past 15 years.
37:18Good morning.
37:19We are in this gorgeous
37:20picturesque little restaurant
37:22and it is going to serve
37:23as your set
37:24for the CoverGirl
37:26print ad and commercial.
37:28You guys actually
37:29have the benefit
37:30of having the client
37:31right here.
37:32Hi girls.
37:33CoverGirl will award
37:34the winner
37:35a $100,000
37:36modeling contract.
37:38I know that there
37:39are lots of thoughts
37:40and opinions
37:41when it comes to
37:42the last element
37:43of the competition
37:45which is the CoverGirl
37:46photo shoot
37:47and the input
37:48that CoverGirl
37:49has into
37:50announcing the winner.
37:51Just a little softer
37:52in the mouth
37:53I think.
37:54Oh look how pretty that is.
37:55Great.
37:56Sure.
37:57CoverGirl needs to have
37:58an opinion.
37:59Do they have a final say?
38:00No, I don't believe
38:01that they have a final say
38:02but they certainly
38:03have to like the girl
38:04who's going to be
38:05the face of their brand.
38:06From easy, breezy,
38:07beautiful
38:08CoverGirl.
38:09I'm not altogether sure
38:10but I believe
38:11CoverGirl
38:12had a say
38:13in choosing
38:14the winner
38:15of each episode.
38:16I do believe that
38:17because a lot of the times
38:19it wasn't my choice.
38:20Easy, breezy, beautiful
38:22CoverGirl.
38:23Great.
38:24I've heard
38:25that CoverGirl
38:26does have a say.
38:27How much of that
38:28is true,
38:30I don't know.
38:32I would be on the outside
38:33looking in.
38:35There's never been
38:36an official release
38:37given for Anjalee
38:38losing her crown.
38:40The network
38:41has never produced
38:42the social media post
38:43that Andrew Peterson
38:44alleges led to her
38:46being disqualified.
38:48I personally didn't see it.
38:50I tried to find
38:51that information online.
38:52I couldn't find anything.
38:53Things can be taken
38:54off the internet.
38:55I can delete things.
38:56I don't know
38:57how all that went down.
38:58I'm not privy
38:59to that information
39:00so it's actually
39:01really something
39:02I'm not confident
39:03in talking about.
39:04Despite Anjalee
39:05laying out her story
39:06she ultimately decides
39:07to drop the lawsuit.
39:09And I was just so over it.
39:11I just didn't want
39:12to be silenced.
39:14And I just wanted
39:17people to know
39:18like I won the show.
39:21You deserve this Lisa.
39:22You are a star.
39:25And even though Lisa
39:26benefited from Anjalee's exit
39:28she too ends up a loser.
39:31Nothing happened
39:32with my modeling career.
39:34The industry
39:35still did not
39:36give a shit about me.
39:38Now I'm basically
39:39just reality TV garbage.
39:42Okay.
39:43Alright are we ready?
39:44Top Model
39:45finally comes to an end
39:47in 2018.
39:49Then during the pandemic
39:51all 24 cycles
39:52are released on Hulu.
39:54And this time
39:55viewers see it
39:56through a different lens.
39:57Hi everyone
39:58welcome back to another episode
39:59of Why America's Next Top Model
40:01is the most toxic show
40:02of its decade.
40:03I could not believe
40:04the things that came out
40:05of those people's mouths.
40:06This show is literally
40:07why I experience
40:08eating disorders.
40:09I was watching it
40:10and so was
40:11the rest of the world
40:12in quarantine.
40:13All of a sudden
40:14there was this internet
40:15rise of
40:17hey
40:18this show is really
40:19really problematic.
40:21There's some things on here
40:22that are controversial
40:23and like also need
40:24to be talked about.
40:25Now there's a twist.
40:26We are actually going to
40:27switch your ethnicities.
40:30Oh my God
40:31the photo shoot
40:32where they had to dress up
40:33as other races.
40:34It was a cacophony
40:36of problematic things.
40:38I want to be out
40:39like I'm gay
40:40and I am
40:41I'm really proud of it.
40:42I think there's
40:43a certain thing
40:44of being proud
40:45like I'm black and proud
40:46you know what I mean?
40:47But I'm not like
40:48walking on the red carpet
40:49I'm black.
40:50I'm black.
40:51I'm proud.
40:52It ended up being
40:53such a wake up call
40:54and I think we
40:55came to terms
40:56with how
40:57flawed it is.
40:58Tyra responds
40:59to the criticism
41:00on Twitter
41:01saying the show
41:02made some off choices.
41:05Please.
41:08Her publicist
41:09was probably like
41:10you gotta write something girl.
41:11Tyra's like
41:12okay well think of something.
41:13Okay yeah that sounds good
41:15and then she just went back
41:16to doing what she did
41:17in her Pacific Palisades
41:18Malibu mansion okay?
41:20Like she do not care.
41:22She don't care.
41:23Please.
41:24Good job Tyra.
41:26It would be really easy
41:28to paint Tyra
41:29as just this
41:30malicious overlord
41:31who has all this power.
41:33In some ways
41:34she's a great example
41:35of how hurt people
41:36hurt people
41:37and people who
41:39succeed within a
41:40flawed system
41:41are the best people
41:43to perpetuate it.
41:44You're making me
41:45start to believe that
41:46maybe this competition
41:47isn't for you
41:48because you're here
41:49to get feedback.
41:50I am not trying
41:51to cut you down.
41:52Ultimately
41:53Top Model
41:54was a competition
41:55reality show
41:56on finding a model.
41:57That is the basis
41:59of America's
42:00Next Top Model.
42:01When you enter
42:02the real world of fame
42:03and supermodels
42:04there's millions of people
42:05cutting you down
42:06every day.
42:07The intention
42:08was never to go out
42:09and to change
42:10the image of women
42:12or to change
42:13you know
42:14how women felt
42:15about themselves.
42:16She's got rolls of skin
42:17that hang over her jeans.
42:18If I said anything
42:19on the show
42:20about scrutiny
42:22and severe criticism
42:24of a body type
42:25I apologize.
42:26That was for TV purposes
42:28and I was stupid enough
42:29to say it.
42:30I'm deeply deeply sorry
42:31if I offended anyone.
42:34As for the women
42:35who appeared on the show
42:36the damage has been done
42:38but they're stronger for it.
42:41I don't like being silenced
42:42and I think that's why
42:43I got into
42:44a career in journalism
42:45because I felt like
42:46my voice was being
42:47taken from me
42:48and I wanted to be able
42:50to help other people
42:52who may have felt
42:53the same way
42:54by telling their stories.
42:55If I could talk
42:56to the version of myself
42:57that was a contestant
42:58on the show
42:59I think mainly
43:00I would tell myself
43:01to stop being a victim
43:02of circumstances
43:03and stand up for yourself.
43:05I get really quiet
43:07sometimes
43:08and it takes like a gusto
43:09for me to be like
43:10**** this I'm speaking
43:11but after experiencing this
43:13that's all I'll ever do.
43:16I have learned
43:17to create a life
43:19completely changing
43:20the narrative
43:21of what I was supposed
43:22to become
43:23a statistic.
43:26And now I'm thriving
43:27have absolutely no fear
43:29in what anybody
43:30throws my way
43:31and I am so **** proud
43:34of who I am.
43:36If I was given
43:37the opportunity
43:38to go on the show now
43:40absolutely not.
43:42Hard pass.
43:43No.
43:44No.
43:45America's Next Top What?
43:46No.
43:47I'm good.
43:48I don't need to be
43:49America's Next Top Model.
43:50I don't know if I ever did.
43:57America's Next Top Model
43:58America's Next Top Model
43:59America's Next Top Model