Tyra Banks opened up about one of her biggest career regrets during an appearance on the Today with Jenna & Friends show on April 15. The 51-year-old former supermodel revealed she wishes she hadn’t walked away from modeling when she did, admitting her decision was driven more by fear than empowerment.
Banks explained that during her modeling heyday, the industry had a reputation for discarding models as they aged. “Because in the modeling industry back in the day, they would kick you out at a certain stage,” she told host Jenna Bush Hager. “It was like, ‘Goodbye.'” This mindset led her to turn down a three-year Victoria’s Secret contract, despite having already worked with the brand for a decade.
What made the decision particularly regretful, Banks noted, was that Victoria’s Secret was actually supportive of models at different ages. “They weren’t age-sensitive,” she said. “They were loving the age and all of that, but I walked away because I was like, ‘But y’all gonna kick me out in three years.'” At the time, she also felt pressure to prove herself in television and worried she wouldn’t be taken seriously as a talk show host if she remained a model.
When Bush Hager asked if she regretted leaving modeling, Banks responded emphatically: “Yes, I do. Oh, Jenna, I regret it.” Looking back, she realized she had limited herself by buying into the idea that women couldn’t successfully pursue multiple careers. “Victoria’s Secret was telling me that I could be more, but I still was saying that I couldn’t,” she reflected.
Banks, who made a brief return to the Victoria’s Secret runway in 2024, has since embraced a different perspective. “Now I know—just leap and keep going and defy what people are telling you,” she said. The media mogul also recently addressed controversies surrounding America’s Next Top Model, which she hosted for 24 cycles, acknowledging that while the show wasn’t perfect, she’s proud of how it helped change the industry.
“Did we get it right? Hell no. I said some dumb s—,” Banks admitted during her ESSENCE Black Women in Hollywood Awards speech in February. “But I refuse to have my legacy be about some stuff linked together on the Internet when there were 24 cycles of changing the world.” Now, she sees herself as proof that women—especially Black women—can successfully reinvent themselves and break barriers in multiple fields.
