Just like Netflix’s previous documentary Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model, E!’s Dirty Rotten Scandals, the latest episodes of which were released on March 11, take viewers to the dark alleys of the reality show created by Tyra Banks. The documentary is not particularly about ANTM. It also examines some of the sinister behind-the-scenes activities at popular TV shows, including The Price is Right and Dr. Phil. But the latest bombshells it uncovers about America’s Next Top Model has attracted a lot of attention. 

The most shocking revelation from the documentary is the incident when the winner was stripped of her title.

Angelea Preston, the original winner of Cycle 17, was stripped of her title and disqualified after being crowned. Before winning Cycle 17, Angelea Preston participated in Cycles 12 and 14 of ANTM. But Preston's victory was never broadcast. The model was called into a conference with Michelle Mock, the casting director for ANTM, and CBS management, who informed her that her title would be revoked because of her prior involvement in s** work.

Lisa D'Amato was declared the official champion after the final was reshot. In the documentary, Preston claimed that she had already informed the production of her situation and her past before joining the show. However, she was still disqualified. The panel's announcement of Preston's removal for disclosing 'some information' raised questions from viewers, but the show never made clear why she was actually disqualified or that she was the initial winner.

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This is not an isolated incident, as the list of shady things that happened during the show is very long. But among them, contestants not being paid stands out.

Yoanna House, the winner of Cycle 2, acknowledged that the competitors in the series did not receive any residuals or payment to appear on the show. So when Banks claimed to the media that Adrianne Curry, the winner of Cycle 1, was making a lot of money, that was not true at all. Curry claimed in a 2023 interview with Entertainment Weekly that instead of the $100,000 contract she was promised, all she got was a $15,000 makeup demonstration and an unsuccessful agency agreement.

Executive producer Ken Mok, host and creator Tyra Banks, former judges Miss J, Nigel Barker, and creative director Jay Manuel all shared their opinions on Reality Check, yet they are absent from E!'s documentary. Instead, Dirty Rotten Scandals features a number of former contestants, former judge and supermodel Janice Dickinson, and cultural analysts and commentators such as writer Brian Moylan and Perez Hilton to express their opinions.

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Were you aware of these controversies of America’s Next Top Model? If yes, then which one do you think is the most nefarious? Tell us in the comments.