Tyra Bank's Career on a Downside

Tyra Banks

Tyra Banks' celebrity status is quickly fading and one can’t wish away the fact that her influence in the beauty industry is slowing down. One might; Why would anyone leave an industry at the height of their fame and fortune? Banks may have asked herself that question more than once since retiring from modeling in 2005 at age 31. At the time, she explained she wanted to go out on top and "be like the athletes who seem stuck in time," but a decade after Banks ended a supermodel reign of nearly 20 years, it seems unlikely that her dreams of Michael Jordan-style lasting glory are destined to come true.

There has been chatter about a Victoria Secret reunion show featuring Banks, along with former Angels Gisele Bündchen and Heidi Klum. "I have been asked to do a reunion many years ago," Banks told Watch What Happens Live in 2014, "and I said no because I was trying to be taken seriously as a talk show host and as an executive producer and as a businesswoman." What would she say if asked again? "I don't know if I would. But whenever I see them, I feel like we have a connection, these Angels, because we're like the O.G. original Angels. Like, that was invented on us." Banks added, "And, the president of Victoria's Secret promised me a lifetime supply of Victoria's Secret products, even after I decided to leave the company. But once I left, he only let me have it for a year. So I have a bone to pick."

After five seasons, Tyra was canceled in May 2010. The talk show featured a mix of female empowerment messages, sometimes messy monologues, and antics by the former model, all of which took a turn for the worse in later seasons. Banks and her team sought out drama-filled guests to boost sagging ratings, but the show's new personality made it look less like The Oprah Winfrey Show and more like The Jerry Springer Show. Needless to say, the change in direction did not help Banks.