.jpeg "Netflix Asks Judge to Dismiss Tyra Banks Defamation Lawsuit")
In a filing submitted Friday, Netflix pushed back against Banks’ claims that the documentary manipulated her comments and portrayed her unfairly. The company argued that Banks cannot sue simply because she dislikes the way her interview was edited or presented.
Netflix said that, without Banks’ allegations of “manipulation” and “surgical editing,” her lawsuit essentially amounts to a request for “more airtime and an edit more to her liking.”
The streaming giant also argued that courts should not interfere with editorial decisions simply because an interview subject would have preferred a different version of the final documentary.
“Tyra Banks was given the opportunity to speak openly about her experience and the creators fairly presented her perspective alongside those of every other participant shown in this documentary,” Netflix said in a statement. “We stand behind Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model and will continue to vigorously defend it.”
Banks filed her lawsuit in June. She accused the documentary’s creators of manipulating her interview and making her appear evasive when discussing a contestant’s sexual assault.
According to Banks’ lawsuit, the documentary also gave viewers the impression that she knew about the alleged assault and failed to act, while suggesting that the incident was exploited for ratings. Banks disputed that portrayal and said the editing made her appear as though she could not remember important details.
Netflix has now asked the court to throw out the case. A hearing on the motion is scheduled for October 30.
For now, the dispute centers on whether the documentary crossed the line from protected editorial storytelling into unlawful defamation. That question will be up to the court to decide.
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