An “America’s Next Top Model” alum is speaking out years after her controversial makeover aired, and she’s not holding back. Jeana Turner, who appeared on Cycle 24 of the long-running reality competition, claims she was misled by production before receiving the infamous head-shaving transformation that shocked viewers in 2018. Her comments come on the heels of Netflix’s new docuseries examining the show’s legacy, which she says only begins to reveal what contestants actually experienced behind the scenes.

“America’s Next Top Model” alum Turner says she was misled by Tyra Banks and her team before receiving her infamous head shave makeover in 2018.

Turner spoke with the Daily Mail days after the release of the Netflix docuseries “Reality Check,” described by the streamer as Banks and a collection of “models, judges and insiders” reminiscing on “the reality show’s complicated legacy.” She said that after watching the three-episode limited series, she felt it was only “scratching the surface” of the “harsh treatment” and “emotional manipulation” the hundreds of models who populated the show’s casts had to endure.

The Nashville-born model was 24 when she appeared on 15 episodes of the hit reality series during its 24th season in 2018.

Turner, who was diagnosed with alopecia when she was 10, was involved in a number of uncomfortable sequences on the show, most infamously, on the third episode of the season, titled “Beauty Is a Trademark.”

In the episode, which aired in January of 2018, Banks and producers ordered Turner to shave her head in front of the cameras and model bald during a makeover-themed segment. (She had worn wigs on the runway prior to that point in her career.) “What I was told was, ‘We know that you lost your hair during your childhood so we’re going to replace the hair that you lost,’” Turner told the Daily Mail.

Turner, who presides over a beauty business Haus Of Anomali (which offers wigs, hair pieces and extensions), said she originally believed she would be receiving a high-end wig as part of the makeover. “For me, I’m thinking OK that’s exciting because this is ‘America’s Next Top Model’ and I’ve struggled with wigs my entire life,” she said. “I’ve struggled for so long to restore the hair that I initially lost as a child; the texture, the color, everything.”

Turner said she was confident she was working with industry professionals capable of delivering the transformation she envisioned. “So I’m like if there’s anyone that can do it, its Tyra Banks and her makeover team, of course, so I got really excited,” she said.

But according to Turner, the moment quickly took an unexpected turn when stylist Law Roach revealed what was actually planned. “They were like ‘Hey Jeana, you know how we told you we were giving you a wig?’ And I’m like, ‘Yeah.’ He said ‘Psych,’ and he takes out a razor, a regular razor that you would shave your armpits with, and was like ‘Psych, we’re BIC-ing your head!’”

Turner described freezing as she processed what was happening while cameras continued rolling. “I’m one of those people that is like so hyper aware of cameras and who’s looking at all times,” she said. “I didn’t want to, at the time, put myself in a vulnerable position that kind of exposed how raw I actually felt at that time. I was just trying to gather my own thoughts, and just like figure it out, so I kind of just froze. I think I was maybe in a shock a little bit.”

Turner said her feelings shifted to anger as she realized how different reality was from what she believed had been promised. “They told me I was getting hair to now that they’re taking my wig off and also shaving what little bit of hair that I have,” said Turner, explaining that the hair being removed carried deep personal meaning because she had been growing it since childhood.

Turner also reflected more broadly on how contestants’ experiences often extended beyond what viewers saw on television. “What people saw was a version of events, but it wasn’t necessarily the whole picture,” Turner said. “At the end of the day, across 24 cycles, I think there’s been 400 and something contestants, you know that’s 400 and something different experiences from that show, and some a bit more traumatic than others. But for many of us, the impact went beyond what made it to air.”

Director Steven Soderbergh is finally breaking his silence on “The Hunt for Ben Solo.” The project was officially announced by Adam Driver last year. The “Star Wars” actor revealed that he and Soderbergh had worked on the project for about two years before it was scrapped by top Disney execs, who didn’t understand how his character, Ben Solo, could still be alive after the events of 2019’s “The Rise of Skywalker.”

The sequel trilogy kicked off with 2015’s “The Force Awakens,” in which Adam Driver played the villainous Kylo Ren. He continued the role in 2017’s “The Last Jedi,” but was eventually redeemed in 2019’s “The Rise of Skywalker.” Unfortunately, he gave his life force to Rey (Daisy Ridley) after defeating Emperor Palpatine in order to bring her back to life, and seemingly faded into the Force himself.

Although Lucasfilm approved the idea, Disney executives later pulled the plug, saying they didn’t understand how Ben Solo could still be alive. In a new interview with BK Mag, the Oscar-winning filmmaker said, “It was no surprise” to hear that former Lucasfilm exec Kathleen Kennedy was frustrated by the film’s cancellation during her exit interview.

“We were all frustrated,” Soderbergh said. “You know, that was two and a half years of free work for me and Adam and [writer] Rebecca Blunt. When Adam and I discussed him talking about it publicly, I said, ‘Look, do not editorialize or speculate about the why. Just say what happened, because all we know is what happened.’ The stated reason was, ‘We don’t think Ben Solo could be alive.’ And that was all we were told. And so there’s nothing to do about it, you know, except move on.”

“I’d kind of made the movie in my head, and just felt bad that nobody else was going to get to see it,” he continued. “I thought the conversation was strictly going to be a practical one—where they go, what is this going to cost? And I had a really good answer for that. But it never even got to that point. It’s insane. We’re all very disappointed.”

In October 2025, fans were shocked to hear Adam Driver reveal that the movie had been in the works when he was promoting his latest film, “Father Mother Sister Brother,” in an interview with the Associated Press.

“I always was interested in doing another ‘Star Wars,’” Driver said. “I had been talking about doing another one since 2021. Kathleen (Kennedy) had reached out. I always said: With a great director and a great story, I’d be there in a second. I loved that character and loved playing him.”

Soderbergh and Rebecca Blunt outlined a story that was pitched to Kennedy, Lucasfilm vice president Cary Beck, and Lucasfilm chief creative officer Dave Filoni. Scott Z. Burns was brought in to write the script, which Driver called “one of the coolest (expletive) scripts I had ever been a part of.”

“We presented the script to Lucasfilm. They loved the idea. They totally understood our angle and why we were doing it,” Driver says. “We took it to Bob Iger and Alan Bergman, and they said no. They didn’t see how Ben Solo was alive. And that was that.”

“It was called ‘The Hunt for Ben Solo,’ and it was really cool,” he added. “But it is no more, so I can finally talk about it.” Although he didn’t reveal much of the film’s plot, he did emphasize that it was going to be a character-driven film along the lines of “The Empire Strikes Back.”

“We wanted to be judicial about how to spend money and be economical with it, and do it for less than most but in the same spirit of what those movies are, which is handmade and character-driven,” Driver says. “‘Empire Strikes Back’ being, in my opinion, the standard of what those movies were. But he is, to me, one of my favorite directors of all time. He lives his code, lives his ethics, doesn’t compromise.”

At the time, Soderbergh released his own statement, saying, “I really enjoyed making the movie in my head. I’m just sorry the fans won’t get to see it.”