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Step onto the wildest and most unpredictable runways in America’s Next Top Model history, where confidence meets chaos! From walking in bulky life jackets and dodging skateboards to balancing candles on your head or strutting blindfolded, these runway challenges pushed models far beyond the typical catwalk. Watch as they face swinging pendulums, vertical drops, and even fire-fingered fashion moments that leave everyone breathless!
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00:00Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the wildest,
00:04weirdest, and most wonderfully unhinged catwalk tests in America's Next Top Model history.
00:09My mission has always been to expand what America considers beautiful.
00:13Question what makes a model.
00:16Number 20. Lifejacket Runway
00:18Cycle 9 barely gets 33 hopefuls aboard a Caribbean cruise before their first fashion test arrives.
00:24As a top model, sometimes you have to work it with whatever you are wearing.
00:31And right now you're about to star in your very first fashion show.
00:35Their first assignment is to strut in bulky flotation gear under pressure,
00:39making basic safety equipment part of the styling.
00:42It is classic top model logic.
00:44Take something practical, put it on a catwalk, and demand complete confidence anyway.
00:49I don't have any modeling experience, but I have this catwalk texture.
00:52It's just natural.
00:54Like, I don't practice or anything. It's just there.
00:56Jenna worries she might fall or cry,
00:58while Victoria struggles with what to do once her turn arrives.
01:02Before the cast is finalized,
01:04the season has already made staying afloat part of the job description.
01:07I've seen your walks. There's a lot of you who need extra help.
01:11There's actually quite a bit of you that I think are absolutely fantastic on a natural basis.
01:16Okay, I'm out. Peace out.
01:18Number 19. Crowdsurf Catwalk
01:20This runway doesn't stop at the edge of the stage.
01:23That's where the real challenge begins.
01:25So you'll walk down this runway, do your turn, and when I say go, you will fall into your guys.
01:34After getting catwalk coaching from Stacey McKenzie, 14 models head to Marquee Nightclub,
01:38where their walk ends with a dive into the crowd for a midair photo.
01:42Zendaya judges the challenge and picks Kyle, saying she stood out and looked like a boss.
01:47Kyle was such a boss, like, literally.
01:49That's why I liked her.
01:50Like, she blew me away.
01:51That's great. Okay, we got it.
01:53The shoot produces a different standout, with Cody earning best photo.
01:57Justine fares much worse.
01:59The judges liken her to a flailing fish, and call her photograph elementary before she becomes the first contestant eliminated.
02:06You were a flailing fish in a net in this shoot.
02:10It was so hard to direct you.
02:12If you would have just been in that moment and been with, like, Peter, and, like, that direct eye contact,
02:18you would have nailed this.
02:19Think you could serve face while everything around you goes completely off the rails?
02:23Skip the stilettos and strut straight onto Ms. Mojo's 24-7 live stream instead.
02:28Scan the QR code on screen for non-stop pop culture fun.
02:31There's something about her.
02:33If I could get my hands on her, work with her a little bit, I'm sure I could bring on
02:36some fear since I thought about one.
02:37Number 18.
02:38Masked Cobblestone Catwalk
02:40This challenge piled one problem on top of another.
02:43After a tightrope lesson, the models faced a major balance test,
02:47walking in high heels over uneven stones while wearing vision-obscuring masks.
02:52This should be good.
02:54Rock the rocks that you're walking on, baby.
02:56Sency.
02:57Oh, sexy.
02:59Faster.
02:59Come on, girl.
03:00Former contestant Brie Sculler helped judge as they followed a taped line and tried to stay composed.
03:06Amanda repeatedly rolled her ankle, Meg tripped, and Jay Alexander felt Melrose had lost her confidence,
03:12while AJ impressed with her naturally straight walk.
03:15Straight on the line.
03:16Straight on the line.
03:17I find that I actually naturally walk in a straight line.
03:20Like, my feet just go one in front of the other.
03:22Some of you girls learned something yesterday on that line, right?
03:25She won the challenge and chose Meg and Carrie D to join her at a Dennis Quaid charity fashion show
03:30in Austin.
03:31Who's wagging?
03:32I want Meg.
03:33What?
03:34I was like, yeah, rock and roll.
03:36This is so rad.
03:37Let's go.
03:38Number 17.
03:39Freight Container Drop
03:40The road to Cycle 22's final cast runs straight through a shipping yard and several feet above it.
03:47You will all walk the runway, but only the final models will be carried across the gap.
03:52The rest of you will be lowered down, or as I would say, dropped.
03:55The Hopefuls modeled Eric Rosette's clothes, with the women also wearing footwear from Miss J's line
04:00as they traversed a narrow catwalk suspended high among stacks of shipping containers.
04:04Look it out.
04:14At the edge, those advancing were carried across the gap by harnesses,
04:19while eliminated Hopefuls were lowered toward the ground instead.
04:22Next Management's Alexis Borges liked Niall's potential, but wanted his body to, quote,
04:27speak for him, while Mamay won the challenge.
04:30Fashion show, casting cut, and fear test all at once?
04:34Peak top model.
04:35Mamay winning the tire swing again.
04:37I'm jealous.
04:38Deep down in my heart, I was hoping that she would have burst into flames.
04:41Number 16.
04:43Skater Dodging Catwalk
04:44A skate park is chaotic enough before models have to walk straight into traffic of a very different kind.
04:50And we see these skateboarders and graffiti and the beach.
04:54I'm just over here like, oh, it's about to go down.
04:58At Venice Beach Skate Park, Stacey McKenzie coaches their walks,
05:01and Baja East turns the outing into a full fashion show.
05:05The contestants must stay composed and focused as active skateboarders move around them.
05:10I missed my mark, and I'm really pissed at myself.
05:12I let these skaters get to me, which now I've maybe got my chance to be in New York Fashion
05:19Week.
05:19Brendi Kay and Ivana both miss their marks,
05:22while Christiana ultimately takes the challenge win.
05:24She earns a place in a Baja East show at New York Fashion Week,
05:28giving this daredevil detour a genuine industry payoff.
05:32So the girl that gets to walk in a Baja East fashion show in New York,
05:36the girl who blew us away,
05:39Christiana.
05:43Being curvy and being over 30, this brings me so much hope.
05:47Number 15.
05:48Divine Transformation Runway
05:50The challenge treats a basic catwalk like it simply isn't dramatic enough.
05:55This is the final whammy.
05:56It's a theatrical runway.
05:58So we have to encompass basically everything we've learned
06:00over the whole course of this competition into the runway.
06:04In Greece, Lisa D'Amato, Alison Harvard, and Anjali Preston
06:07wear custom Michael Cinco gowns for a show that shifts them
06:10from earthly figures into goddesses.
06:12First comes a plunge into the pool,
06:15then a quick change transformation,
06:16and a brief harness flight before they finally hit the runway on foot.
06:20When my song goes on, I get really excited because
06:22I hear the audience cheering.
06:25Their own Cycle 17 songs blast during the walk,
06:28adding another layer of glorious excess.
06:30Lisa struggles underwater, and Alison fights the wind.
06:33But the judges later praise Lisa's runway command
06:36while faulting Alison's walk.
06:38Lisa ultimately takes the title.
06:39You deserve this, Lisa.
06:41You are an original.
06:43You are a star.
06:45Number 14.
06:46The High Heel Gauntlet
06:47A short walk becomes a balanced nightmare
06:49when the models face a test inspired by Vivian Westwood's famously towering heels.
06:54A new model cannot fall or stumble in shoes like these.
07:02Close your mouth, Dean, you're catching flies.
07:05The challenge is to cross the judging room floor in extremely high heels,
07:09and several contestants immediately struggle to stay steady.
07:12Carrie lands in the bottom two and is ultimately eliminated that week.
07:20Wait, wait, just wait.
07:22Gather yourself before you step up those stairs.
07:24Make sure your ankles are straight.
07:25Okay, now you can exit.
07:27Danielle has the most painful outcome.
07:29A bad fall leaves her returning to judging on crutches.
07:32Between wobbling ankles and repeated tumbles,
07:35the exercise transforms a basic walk into a reminder
07:38that top model could make even a few steps feel like a full-on stunt.
07:42That was a very difficult test.
07:44So difficult that somebody did what?
07:46Sprained my baby toe.
07:47It hurts, but you know, the best fall down sometimes as long as you get back up.
07:51Number 13.
07:52Spinning Turntable
07:53Balance itself becomes the whole assignment
07:56when the floor itself refuses to cooperate.
07:58One other thing about this runway, by the way,
08:04the Cycle 20 models meet Nylon's then-editor-in-chief Marvin Scott Jarrett
08:09and learn that their fashion show will take place on a rotating platform.
08:12Nina makes it through despite nursing an ankle she twisted during casting,
08:16while Jeremy and Mike end up with the lowest challenge scores.
08:19Jordan wins, earning an appearance on Nylon TV.
08:22Jordan, you're the winner.
08:25Cycle 17 had already played with the same idea,
08:28making the models step onto and off a moving carousel
08:31during a Kardashian collection runway show.
08:34Apparently, stationary runways were simply too easy.
08:37Congratulations to all you guys.
08:39You did an amazing job today.
08:41Some of you were better than others.
08:43Number 12.
08:44Walking Tall
08:45Putting models several feet above the runway
08:47is one way to make every step more precarious.
08:50Designers are always looking for dramatic ways to show off their fashions.
08:53And top model has a long history with still.
08:57Wearing dramatic Pui Quinonez designs,
08:59the Cycle 21 contestants have to model on stilts,
09:02turning every step into part of the performance.
09:05Ralea falls before making her entrance,
09:07while Mirjana struggles during practice but recovers once the show begins.
09:11Forced to walk alone after Romeo's disqualification,
09:14Ben ultimately takes the challenge win.
09:16I'm gonna make this happen, and I'm gonna make the crowd love it.
09:20Cycle 9 had supplied an earlier stilt-related disaster
09:23when Chantal Jones' flowing train tripped a stilt-walker
09:26during the finale runway in Beijing.
09:28I was in character, you know.
09:29I knew I had to keep walking, but at the same time, like,
09:32I know I broke character because I felt like,
09:35oh my god, I wanted to go, like, apologize and pick him up and, like, help him.
09:38Number 11.
09:39Hissing Cockroach Catwalk
09:40A fashion accessory is supposed to compliment the outfit,
09:44not hiss at you.
09:45Designers do all sorts of crazy things to get into the press,
09:48so you, as models, have to be ready for anything.
09:51These are giant Madagascar hissing cockroaches.
09:54For Jared Gold's spring collection,
09:56the Cycle 6 models walk wearing bedazzled Madagascar hissing cockroaches,
10:00turning the catwalk into a test of nerve.
10:03Gina, terrified of the insects, struggles to make it onto the runway.
10:06I can't handle it, and I'm really thinking maybe I just shouldn't do this.
10:10Go for it, girl.
10:11Okay, ready?
10:13Princess, you gotta get it together.
10:15You're holding up the show.
10:17Jade goes in the opposite direction,
10:19posing with and kissing her cockroach at the end of her walk
10:22and winning the challenge.
10:23Her prize lets her bring Danielle, Leslie, Nenna, and Molly Sue
10:27to a Sherry Bodell show during Los Angeles Fashion Week.
10:30Jade and her party will be getting the total VIP treatment
10:33at the Sherry Bodell runway show here at Fashion Week immediately after this.
10:37Beautiful.
10:38Number 10.
10:38High fashion.
10:39Do you really want to know how high the stakes really, really are?
10:43Take a look up there.
10:44Take a look up there.
10:45America's next top model competitors know they're in for a challenge
10:48when they sign up for the show,
10:49but it turns out that if you're afraid of heights,
10:51you might want to pass on this particular modeling competition.
10:54I'm kind of freaking out,
10:55because even though I'm like super, super tall,
10:57I'm still afraid of heights, which is kind of ironic.
11:00In the show's 15th cycle,
11:01the models were thrilled to find out that they'd be modeling clothes
11:04by the legendary designer Diane von Furstenberg,
11:07but their spirits inevitably fell when they found out where they'd be modeling them.
11:11Four stories in the air on a clear runway.
11:14Oh!
11:17At least there's a harness, and you're not down there.
11:19Not only did this mean that the audience on the ground couldn't even get a good look at the clothes,
11:23it also meant that the models were absolutely terrified.
11:27I was so scared.
11:28Like, I had to think, am I gonna die? Do I look good?
11:30And the same thought.
11:31Number 9. Silly String
11:33By the time America's next top model had reached its 21st season,
11:37the producers had to get creative when it came to thinking up challenges.
11:40I'm really nervous. I'm nervous that something's gonna fall off.
11:42I'm gonna be naked on stage.
11:44How could they possibly create a runway challenge unlike any they had done before?
11:48Well, one way is to dispense with fashion altogether
11:51and have the models walk down the catwalk with only silly string covering them up.
11:55Considering this happened very early in Cycle 21,
11:58it should come as no surprise that some of the contestants were absolutely terrified
12:02to be strutting their stuff essentially in the nude for all to see.
12:09You know, Adam was like a joke.
12:11The one thing missing from Adam's walk was holding a keg.
12:14Number 8. Candle Balance
12:15When the final few girls headed to Morocco in Cycle 16,
12:19they were in for a surprise when it came to their runway challenge.
12:22In a themed challenge, that in retrospect seems just a teensy bit culturally appropriative,
12:27the girls donned locally inspired outfits
12:30and had to walk with trays of lit candles on their heads.
12:32I think, Brittany...
12:34My book!
12:35She's transformation.
12:37She started to move and she didn't find down her tray.
12:42She didn't drop her tray.
12:44As you can imagine, this did not go smoothly for everyone.
12:47And they should be thankful that there were people on hand
12:49to prevent this from turning into arson rather than fashion.
12:52I'm walking down the stairs and I trip on my skirt.
12:58And Miss J was like, if things fall off, you know, you can pick them up and be cute.
13:02And I was just like, screw this.
13:04We know balance is important, but this seemed a bit extreme.
13:07I don't really have, like, the hip movement, so I just kind of try to maybe do the wave.
13:15Number 7. Blindfolded
13:17After receiving a primer on how to properly work it on a runway, the group found out that they'd be
13:22modeling clothes for renowned designer Jeremy Scott.
13:25As if that wasn't intimidating enough, they'd also have to wear blindfolds while modeling his wares.
13:30And I just had all the confidence in the world, probably for the first time in this competition.
13:34If this seems like a cruel and unusual challenge to you, you wouldn't be wrong.
13:39Not only that, but to make the stakes even higher, the competitors were told that someone would be eliminated after
13:44the challenge
13:45and wouldn't even get a chance to do that week's photo shoot.
13:48Just walk straight, do some cute poses, and go back.
13:52Number 6. Bubble Bobble
13:54Sometimes America's Next Top Model challenges leave us asking, why?
13:58In the very first episode of Cycle 16, the models were thrown into a ridiculous competition.
14:03Not only are we on a 12-inch board, we're over water.
14:07And then they're like, oh, and then we're gonna put you in this big-ass plastic ball.
14:11I'm like, I'm gonna be the one that falls, because I'm that clumsy.
14:14They might have initially been thrilled to be able to model looks by much-loved designer Alexander Wang,
14:18but they were probably questioning the show's methodology when they found out they'd be walking over water in a bubble.
14:28Of course, more than one girl found herself struggling to stay upright,
14:32and while they may have tried to work it, the end result just left us feeling bad for them.
14:40Girl down!
14:42Number 5. Fire Fingers
14:44There's one more thing.
14:46Did I happen to mention that we'll also be lighting you on fire tonight?
14:51Oh my god.
14:52You will be walking with your hands absolutely on fire.
14:57We're not sure what was going on behind the scenes in Cycle 16,
15:00but this season featured another ridiculous runway challenge.
15:03In this episode, they were wearing items by Jeffrey Mack
15:07and walking through a pyrotechnics extravaganza to show them off.
15:10But as if that wasn't enough,
15:11the girls also had to set their own hands on fire before actually starting their walk
15:16and strut with small flames in the palms of their hands the entire time.
15:19As soon as I let my hands on fire, I was like the queen of fire or something.
15:23What was the logic behind this?
15:25Has any model ever had to do this in a real runway show?
15:29We'll probably never know.
15:30I'm scared waiting for the queue backstage to go and then I go and I'm trying to light myself on
15:35fire.
15:41You know, usually that's a good thing.
15:43You have trouble lighting yourself on fire.
15:45Number 4. Treadmill runway.
15:47Have you ever walked on a conveyor belt before?
15:49No.
15:50I don't even know how to walk normally, let alone on a conveyor belt, but we'll see.
15:54Any challenge that seems like it's trying to ensure that at least one girl falls over is a crazy one
15:59in our books.
15:59Do you think there's a risk with this getting caught in the conveyor belt?
16:03Girl, fashion is a risk.
16:05In Cycle 15, the models were forced to walk on a conveyor belt style runway,
16:09all while wearing elaborate and constricting gowns by Hervé Leger.
16:12I guess I started to overthink it.
16:16The movement of the extra-long treadmill caused more than one of the girls to stumble,
16:20which we can't say was exactly surprising.
16:23What did the judges think was going to happen?
16:25This didn't exactly seem like a practical way to judge the girls on anything to do with modeling.
16:36Number 3. Swinging Pendulums.
16:38This is a challenge, and you girls have to walk through these pendulums.
16:52When the pitch for a runway challenge sounds like a level of Super Mario,
16:56you might want to reconsider.
16:57In Cycle 14, the models were forced to contend with large pendulums swinging from the ceiling.
17:02The pendulum hits me, and it startles me.
17:05So my main focus is just keep going, pose, so they know that I recovered well.
17:09They had to time their walk flawlessly in order to avoid being hit by one of them.
17:14I was so embarrassed, thinking, oh man, I messed it up, I blew it.
17:17One model, Alexandra, fell twice during this challenge.
17:20Once while walking down the stairs, which didn't even have anything to do with the pendulum,
17:24and a second time when one of the swinging objects knocked her right off the runway.
17:28Ouch.
17:32Oh lord, baby girl.
17:34Number 2. Dock runway.
17:36This is not unrealistic.
17:38These girls have to be prepared to do almost anything to sell a garment.
17:41Why, oh why, do they continuously make these poor girls walk in precarious conditions over water?
17:47In stilettos.
17:48It like starts tipping, and like, I almost fall in.
17:53Alright, she nailed it.
17:54In Cycle 7, the models had to basically walk the gangplank.
17:58They were asked to work on a teeter-tottering dock over water
18:01that seemed to wobble no matter how carefully they planned their steps.
18:04I just have to make sure that in each shot, I'm giving some sort of emotion.
18:09So hopefully, it comes out well.
18:12On top of all that, Carrie D also had to deal with a wardrobe malfunction
18:15that took place while she was trying to keep her balance.
18:17Hey, it's fashion, honey.
18:19Booms do peek-a-boo in fashion show.
18:22At least she was able to laugh about it.
18:23Eugenia fell during her walk, which landed her in the bottom two that week.
18:27As soon as I stepped on it, with one foot, I like slid.
18:31I kept going after I fell off.
18:34I just kept going.
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19:02Number one, Vertical Runway.
19:04My heart is kind of pounding out of my chest right now.
19:07All right, let's go to the chest.
19:09And I'm just thinking, like, I'm about to fall to my death.
19:12Shortly after finding out that they had made it into the top 16,
19:15the models were greeted with some not-so-happy news.
19:18They'd be walking a vertical runway for their first challenge.
19:27What is a vertical runway, you ask?
19:29Well, basically, it means they have to walk down the side of a building.
19:33And the girls have to do it in heels.
19:35I get on the ledge, and I look down.
19:37My first thought was, like, what if the cord snaps?
19:39I have a kid to live for.
19:40I can't die right now.
19:41Anything for fashion, right?
19:42Once they're unhooked from their harnesses,
19:44they then have to walk down a regular runway
19:47and keep their composure no matter what happened to them
19:50during the vertical portion.
19:51He's walking forth, but he's got something stuck to me.
19:56Which of these challenges would have had you begging to be sent home?
19:59Tell us in the comments.
20:00We'll see you next time.
20:00Bye.
20:01Bye.
20:05Bye.