Ex-'ANTM' Judge Janice Dickinson Roasts Tyra Banks: 'Hardcore B*tch'

Former America's Next Top Model judge Janice Dickinson is revisiting her time on the show—and she’s not mincing words about what she experienced behind the scenes.

Dickinson, who served as a judge during the early seasons of the modeling competition, recently discussed the series while appearing on the E! docuseries Dirty Rotten Scandals.

During the interview, she reflected on her four seasons on the show and claimed that producers encouraged her to be more aggressive toward contestants to create dramatic television.

“The producers, especially Tyra, were begging me to be harsher and cruel, like Simon Cowell was on American Idol,” Dickinson said.

Dickinson became known for her blunt critiques while sitting alongside host Tyra Banks, photographer Nigel Barker, and runway coach Miss J Alexander. While her sharp commentary became part of the show’s identity during its early years, Dickinson now suggests the approach was pushed by the show’s leadership.

Her strongest criticism was directed at Banks. “America’s Next Top Model really tortured these girls for Tyra’s ego. I was there, and I saw it for four seasons,” Dickinson said. “She was a hardcore b*tch.”

Dickinson also pointed to one of the series’ most well-known scenes—the heated confrontation between Banks and Cycle 4 contestant Tiffany Richardson. The moment, which aired in 2005, featured Banks raising her voice as she delivered the now widely quoted line, “We were all rooting for you.”

Recalling that incident, Dickinson said the moment escalated quickly during filming. “Tyra didn’t want any competition,” she claimed. “She went off on one girl, and it was so frightening that I was going to get up and hold her down.”

That confrontation has resurfaced repeatedly in recent years as older episodes of America’s Next Top Model continue circulating online.

Richardson herself recently revisited the moment in a social media post, accusing Banks of mistreating her both on and off camera and claiming that parts of the confrontation were edited to make the exchange appear more supportive than it was.

The incident has also been revisited in the new Netflix docuseries Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model. In the series, Banks addresses the confrontation directly and acknowledges that her reaction escalated. “I went too far. You know, I lost it,” she says in the documentary.

Other people involved with the show have also discussed the moment. Former creative director Jay Manuel describes it in the docuseries as one of the most difficult situations he witnessed while working on the program, adding that comments made during filming were not included in the broadcast episode.

Runway coach Miss J Alexander, who worked with contestants across many seasons of the show, also recalls the confrontation as “very scary” and notes that the aftermath created tension on set.

Despite the controversy surrounding moments like the Richardson confrontation, America’s Next Top Model remains one of the most recognizable reality competition franchises on television.

The series originally aired from 2003 through 2018 and recently returned to the spotlight following the release of the Netflix docuseries and Banks’ confirmation that Cycle 25 of the show is in development.