Tyra Banks' rep says graveyard-themed shoot 'America's Subsequent Prime Mannequin' contestant participated in hours after her good friend's demise would've been 'close to not possible' to vary

• Former “America’s Subsequent Prime Mannequin” contestants spoke about their experiences with Leisure Weekly. 
• One contestant recalled collaborating in a graveyard picture shoot hours after her good friend died. 
• A rep for Tyra Banks informed Insider the picture shoot idea was deliberate earlier than her good friend’s demise. 

A consultant for Tyra Banks mentioned the controversial “America’s Subsequent Prime Mannequin” graveyard picture shoot {that a} contestant did hours after her good friend died was “already deliberate” and “close to not possible” to vary.

On Saturday, Leisure Weekly revealed 14 former “America’s Subsequent Prime Mannequin” stars’ recollections of stunning moments on the present. Though fashionable when it debuted, the fact competitors has confronted backlash lately as previous clips resurfaced on social media and contestants started coming ahead about their experiences.

One of many extra controversial scenes occurred in 2005 with cycle 4 contestant Kahlen Rondot, who participated in a graveyard picture shoot simply hours after studying a childhood good friend died in a automobile accident. 

Contestants have been informed they’d painting the seven lethal sins and be lowered into graves in coffins, an idea that upset Rondot. She cried on digital camera and was comforted by her fellow castmates in footage shared on YouTube. 

When requested in regards to the scene practically 18 years later, a consultant for Banks informed Insider “the theme of this explicit shoot was ‘Seven Lethal Sins,’ which required the women to pose in caskets with cameras above them. The shoot had been deliberate beforehand, and as is customary with any manufacturing of this magnitude, it might have been close to not possible to tug off a complete shoot change, particularly in case you consider all the location scouting, allow necessities, and so on. that go into filming a contest collection.” 

Rondot recalled studying about her good friend’s demise with EW and the aftermath, which she mentioned had an enduring influence on her life. 

“It was late at evening, I used to be checking my voicemails and so a lot of my buddies had left me messages like, ‘Hey, why weren’t you on the funeral? There have been so many photos of you within the montage,'” Rondot mentioned. 

She added that the solid wasn’t knowledgeable in regards to the extent of that week’s problem till they have been on their method to set. Rondot informed the outlet that she virtually stop the competitors as a result of she was overwhelmed and mentioned it is nonetheless a supply of trauma that contributed to her alcoholism. 

“I used to be going to be a mannequin, and Tyra discovered me,” Rondot informed EW. “There are darkish corners and a variety of toxicity in [the industry], and I mashed a variety of issues with the PTSD and ingesting. I used to be like, it is a method to take care of it.”

Rondot additionally mentioned she felt like a “pawn” and was made to really feel like a personality as an alternative of a human.

She added: “I felt like Tyra pulled much more strings than we have been in a position to know. I feel she knew much more of what was occurring than what we knew, and anyone on condition that form of energy, what you do with that form of energy, it displays in your character, I really feel. These individuals develop into objects and are dehumanized for enjoyment. That reveals rather a lot about an individual’s character.”

Banks’ reps responded to Rondot’s remarks of their assertion to EW, saying there have been a “nice variety of people who contributed” to the collection’ manufacturing, “with many points of the present falling exterior Ms. Banks’ purview.”

Rondot is not the one participant who’s criticized “America’s Subsequent Prime Mannequin” lately. Former contestants shared their experiences in an April 2022 Insider report, together with cycle 7’s Eugena Washington, who mentioned she felt like her life “was being placed on the road for rankings.” She recalled having to stroll throughout a path of wood planks swaying over a pool in six-inch heels, an endeavor that left her knee with seen scars after falling. 

Following latest waves of criticism, Banks acknowledged that the collection might have gone too far every now and then in a now-deleted Might 2020 tweet, in line with E! Information. 

“Been seeing the posts in regards to the insensitivity of some previous ANTM moments and I agree with you,” Banks wrote. “Wanting again, these have been some actually off selections. Admire your trustworthy suggestions and am sending a lot love and digital hugs.”