The scandals and backstage betrayals of &34;America's Next Top Model&34; are explored in a new Netflix documentary. Where is Dani Evans now? Why the ANTM winner felt 'thrown to the wolves' after the show The scandals and backstage betrayals of &34;America's Next Top Model&34; are explored in a new Netflix documentary. By Allison DeGrushe :maxbytes(150000):stripicc()/allisondegrusheEWbiophotoe5f8e89253c84b7085a43c502a3051a4.jpg) Allison DeGrushe Allison DeGrushe is a timely SEO writer at . She has been working at since 2025. Her work has previously appeared on Distractify.

The scandals and backstage betrayals of "America's Next Top Model" are explored in a new Netflix documentary.

Where is Dani Evans now? Why the ANTM winner felt 'thrown to the wolves' after the show

The scandals and backstage betrayals of "America's Next Top Model" are explored in a new Netflix documentary.

By Allison DeGrushe

Allison DeGrushe

Allison DeGrushe is a timely SEO writer at **. She has been working at * *since 2025. Her work has previously appeared on Distractify.

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February 16, 2026 10:00 a.m. ET

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Dani Evans in 'Reality Check: Inside America's Next Top Model' docuseries. Credit:

- Dani Evans won cycle 6 of *America's Next Top Model*.

- On Netflix's new *ANTM* docuseries, the model addresses Tyra Banks pressuring her to close the gap in her teeth.

- Leaving the modeling industry, she says, was "the best decision of my life."

*America's Next Top Model*, created and hosted by Tyra Banks, promised a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to make it in the modeling world.

More than two decades since its 2003 premiere, the reality competition is back in the spotlight with the release of Netflix's three-part *Reality Check: Inside America's Next Top Model*, a documentary series that* *takes a critical look at the franchise's numerous scandals, controversial moments, and backstage betrayals.

A major focus of the docuseries concerns the treatment of its contestants. Cycle 6 winner Dani Evans, for example, faced pressure to undergo dental surgery during the competition. When she refused, it nearly jeopardized her shot at the title.

Evans is at the forefront of *Reality Check*. Read on to see how she looks back at her time on *ANTM* and what she's been up to in the years since.

Who is Dani Evans?

Dani Evans (center) and the remaining cycle 6 contestants on 'America's Next Top Model'.

Bill Inoshita/CBS Photo Archive via Getty

Born and raised in Little Rock, Ark., Evans set her sights set on a modeling career in New York after graduating high school. But getting there felt like a long shot.

As she later shared with *BODE Magazine*, it was her brother who encouraged her to audition for *ANTM*. At the time, Evans "did it as a means to get out of Little Rock," adding, "[I remember] so much time had passed since I submitted the audition tape that I forgot about it. I thought I was being prank-called so I kept hanging up in the producer's face. After the third call, I realized it was pretty legit."

Once she made it onto the sixth season (or "cycle," as the show calls them), Evans proved she could deliver in front of the camera. Week after week, her photos and skills impressed the judges — but the critiques kept coming.

Throughout the competition, judges pushed her to refine certain aspects of her appearance. On the Netflix docuseries, Evans reflects on this pressure, including being urged by Banks to make a change to her smile.

What was the tooth-gap controversy?

Dani Evans has a gap in her teeth fixed on 'America's Next Top Model'.

Evans' tooth-gap saga unfolds in episode 8 of cycle 6, and it remains one of the show's most talked-about moments to this day.

In the episode, Banks tells Evans and fellow contestant Joanie Dodds that the judges feel their teeth need cosmetic work. Dodds agrees to the procedure, but Evans does not. The judges want the gap in between her front teeth closed, but Evans repeatedly tells the dentist she doesn't want to lose it.

Later, Evans faced criticism from the judging panel for her decision. "Do you really think you can have a CoverGirl contract with a gap in your mouth?" asks Banks. "It's not marketable."**

On *Reality Check*, Evans recalls feeling like she was given an ultimatum: close the gap or go home. Eventually, she compromises, allowing the dentist to partially close the gap.

"It's my life, and it was toyed with… consciously," she says in the doc. "And me saying no, and them going against that, it's invasive."

'ANTM' returning for cycle 25, Tyra Banks says: 'My work is not done'

'ANTM' winner compares Tyra Banks show to 'modeling Holocaust' in online tirade

Banks addressed the backlash in the docuseries, noting that she "apologized for the issue with Dani and what happened." Still, she notes that the issue was "between a rock and a hard place for me."

She says, "There were agents that would tell me she will not work with those teeth, it's just not going to happen. That's what they told me. And again, I could've just been quiet and let them handle it, but hindsight is 20/20 for all of us. It just so happens that a lot of the things that are 20/20 for me happened in front of the world."

"Bull f---ing s—," Evans replies in her own interview. "Me getting my gap closed is not opening any doors for me. You knew what you were doing for the show. You were making it good for TV, at my expense."

* *has reached out to a representative for Banks for comment.

After the scene resurfaced in 2020, Evans responded to criticism in a since-deleted Instagram video by saying it "carries weight and clearly affected a lot of young girls in America after watching it."

"I want to address all of those young girls," she said. "I want to speak to you right now. You're beautiful. And I'm not talking about a physical feature. It doesn't matter if you have a gap, stacked teeth, straight teeth, it matters not. … I want to remind you of your worth. You're a masterpiece, you're so loved, you're adored, and you're beautiful."

Where is Dani Evans now?

Tyra Banks and Dani Evans on 'Reality Check: Inside America's Next Top Model' docuseries.

After taking home the crown in 2006, Evans (per BODE) returned to Little Rock to keep her win under wraps. Once the season aired, though, she officially moved to New York City to chase her modeling dreams. Her win came with a contract with Ford Models, a spread and cover in *Elle*, and a $100,000 deal with CoverGirl.

Evans enjoyed ample print and runway work, but not without struggle. On *Reality Check*, she recalls feeling thrown "to the wolves" after *ANTM, *describing a "cold" reception at her agency and months without going on castings. She also claims to have heard that she was treated differently because she came from reality TV.

"That was a hard, hard pill to swallow," she says. "My experiences mirrored that. I remember my first show season I didn't book any shows. What I was told was that nobody wanted to book me for their shows because I was viewed as this reality star."

Later, she reveals that she eventually "dissolved" her contract and walked away from the industry, calling it "the best decision of my life."

In 2013, she published a book, *The Skinny on Getting In: An Inside Peek Into the Fashion World for the Aspiring Model,* and a few years later she founded a unisex hat line called Monrowe.

"I often say Monrowe is my love child," Evans told *Ghidotti*. "I eventually want to expand into other niche home items, but most importantly I want Monrowe to just reflect me as an individual, what I feel like my authentic code is and what I love."**

Where can I watch Reality Check: Inside America's Next Top Model?

*Reality Check: Inside America's Next Top Model* is now streaming on Netflix.

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Original Article on Source

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Source: Reality

Published: February 16, 2026 at 10:57AM on Source: PRIME TIME

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