Netflix’s documentary Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model offered a surprising revelation about where J. Alexander stands with Tyra Banks after his controversial ANTM firing.
Alexander was part of America’s Next Top Model from its inception in 2003, first as a runway coach for the contestants and later as a judge alongside Banks, photographer Nigel Barker and creative director Jay Manuel.
This lineup ushered in ANTM’s most popular era and lasted all the way until cycle 18 in 2012, when network executives allegedly pushed Banks and executive producer Ken Mok to address sagging ratings.
“The head of the network [The CW] said, ‘[America’s Next Top Model] is in a mature phase and we need to make a significant change,’” Mok relays in Reality Check.
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While both Banks and Mok deny they were personally responsible for the creative shakeup, they delivered the news to Alexander, Barker and Manuel that they were being fired from ANTM. Alexander endured serious health problems after leaving ANTM, including suffering a debilitating stroke in 2022 that left the runway coach unable to walk.
Keep scrolling for the backstory on why Alexander was fired from America’s Next Top Model and where he stands with Banks now.
Why Was J. Alexander Fired From ‘America’s Next Top Model?’
J. Alexander was a crucial part of America’s Next Top Model from its very first cycle in 2003. He was hired by producers to coach the contestants on their runway walks, as he’d previously worked with supermodels Naomi Campbell, Kimora Lee Simmons and even Tyra Banks. (Alexander eventually joined the ANTM judging panel in 2005.)
By the time cycle 19 rolled around in 2012, America’s Next Top Model was in the middle of a ratings decline. Banks and ANTM executive producer Ken Mok claimed in Reality Check that they were pressured by The CW network executives to make major changes.
Banks said she agonized over being forced to “let go of … three of my hearts” — meaning Alexander, fellow judge Nigel Barker and ANTM creative director Jay Manuel — though she was warned by network executives that there were “no sacred cows.”
“It shocked me. There was no need to replace them,” Mok admitted in the Netflix documentary.
For his part, Alexander recalled receiving a birthday gift from Banks mere days before he was fired from America’s Next Top Model.
J. Alexander and Tyra Banks in April 2015. Jesse Grant/Getty Images for NATAS
“For my birthday, Tyra sent me flowers,” he remembered. “I said, ‘Oh, how sweet,’ with a note [that said], ‘Happy birthday, love Tyra.’ I was fired five days later.”
When Banks and Mok delivered the news of his firing, Alexander remembered thinking, “Come on, give me a break! I was the spine of the show! Then, bye!”
Page Six broke the news of the shocking America’s Next Top Model firings in April 2012. Manuel contended in Reality Check that the “leak” was a violation of his, Alexander and Barker’s agreement with Banks to release a joint statement about their departures.
“There was a ‘leak’ to Page Six that said the three of us were fired,” Manuel claimed. “A ‘leak’ to Page Six? That show and the way we ran confidentiality … there’s no ‘leak’ to Page Six. Anyone can assume where that came from.”
What Happened to J. Alexander After He Was Fired From ‘America’s Next Top Model’?
Jay Alexander continued his association with the Top Model franchise even after he was dropped from ANTM by appearing as a guest judge on Estonia and Russia’s Next Top Model. He judged the similar format, I Supermodel, in China between 2015 and 2016.
The fashion icon shared in Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model that his life changed forever when he suffered a debilitating stroke on December 27, 2022.
“I spent five weeks in a coma and I couldn’t walk. I couldn’t talk,” an emotional Alexander explained in the Netflix documentary.
Tyra Banks and J. Alexander in July 2015. Chelsea Lauren/Getty Images for NYLON
Alexander eventually regained his speech ability, but he was still unable to walk as of the filming of Reality Check. The ANTM alum admitted that it was incredibly painful to no longer be able to do the thing that he built his career on.
“I thought to myself, ‘What was I going to do?’ I couldn’t walk and I couldn’t speak,” he acknowledged. “It was emotional. I cried. I’m not ashamed to say that. I cried.”
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In the closing moments of Reality Check, Alexander assured viewers that he had not given up hope of getting back on the catwalk.
“I miss being the queen of the runway, the catwalks, of course. I’m the person who taught models how to walk. I taught models how to walk and now I can’t walk. Not yet. Not yet,” he said. “I’m determined to walk. I’m sure you’re going to see me again. I’m sure it’s not over for me yet.”
Speaking with Tudum after filming wrapped on Reality Check, Alexander said he was feeling “fine” and focused on his recovery.
“Healing and dealing,” he added.
Where Do Tyra Banks and J. Alexander Stand Now?
J. Alexander revealed in Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model that Jay Manuel and Nigel Barker both visited him in the hospital after his stroke. He offered a shady response when the filmmakers asked if Tyra Banks had done the same.
“No, not yet,” he said with a smile.
Alexander hesitated and then went on, “She just sent me a text the other day. She wants to come and visit me. But no, not yet.”
Banks did not comment on Alexander’s health crisis in Reality Check.
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