Top 30 Worst Americas Next Top Model Makeovers

Welcome to MsMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most regrettable transformations ever in “ANTM” history.

#30: Sara’s Bleached Brows

This Cycle 15 contestant had a striking face that caught fans’ attention from the get-go. During the makeover episode, Tyra tried pushing Sara Blackamore to the editorial side by getting her hair dyed dark brown and her eyebrows bleached blonde. However, instead of achieving a flattering high-contrast look, the change completely threw off the balance in her appearance. Sara ended up getting eliminated in this episode, and Tyra claimed it was because she ‘got lost’ behind her brand new brunette locks. If we’re being honest, though, the makeover didn’t leave her much to work with in the first place.

#29: When Natalie Got Nada

What’s worse than a bad “ANTM” makeover, you ask? Getting no makeover at all. On Cycle 12 of “ANTM”, Natalie Pack became the first model ever to not get a transformation. The two Jays first pranked her by announcing that she’d be getting a short cut, which threw her into panic. Ultimately, they let her proceed to the photo shoot without so much as a trim. This was because Tyra apparently thought she looked perfect just as she was. Now, that wasn’t entirely wrong – Natalie did have a picture-perfect appearance. However, the lack of change made her fade into the background.

#28: Felicia’s Bangs

The Houston, Texas model definitely needed a makeover. Unfortunately, Tyra’s idea of the perfect look for her involved covering her gorgeous face with heavy, blunt bangs. Her aim was to take the attention away from the breakage across her hairline, but the makeover ended up stealing the spotlight from her beautiful features. If that wasn’t enough, Banks also gave her a weave with voluminous curls that were way too overwhelming for her face. The new darker color didn’t work for her either. Her photos started losing the edge they previously boasted, and she was eliminated from the show in episode four.

#27: Ebony’s Braids

Remember on Cycle 2, when Tyra made model Camille McDonald take out her braids, claiming they weren’t, quote, ‘versatile enough for fashion modeling’? She must have had a change of heart because on Cycle 5, she made Ebony Taylor get braids for her makeover. It was a stunning look on her, no questions asked, and she adored it too. However, Taylor could hardly turn the style into an advantage. Besides, we all knew that simply looking pretty wasn’t going to cut it on a show like this. Unsurprisingly, Ebony went home in the makeover episode itself.

#26: Megg’s Mane

From the moment we saw Megan Morales on Cycle 7, she stood out for her effortlessly chic look. However, Tyra said bye-bye to her sleek, straight hairstyles and opted to give her a long, wavy mane instead. From the length to the volume and even the tightness of the curls – everything about her look was wrong. The weave was so huge, it looked disproportionate to her face. Instead of adding movement and texture to her hair, the extensions seemed to weigh her down. No wonder her photos started suffering after the makeover, which ultimately led to her elimination in episode four.

#25: Anya’s Bad Blonde

This Russian model was known for her unique look on Cycle 10. Her facial structure was sharp, but her dark hair brought out her light eyes in a soft and romantic way. The contrast worked in Anya Kop’s favor until Tyra decided to change it all. For her makeover, TyTy ordered stylists to take off some length and bleach her hair to a platinum blonde. It gave the model even more of an edge than she already had, and while it did fit the conventional idea of high fashion at first, the novelty wore off quickly. Nevertheless, her exceptional modeling chops took her to the finals.

#24: Dominique’s Odd Bob

Tyra had a vision for this model’s transformation, but it turned out to be a nightmare. Dominique Reighard got a bob for her makeover, which, when left unstyled, looked quite unflattering. Rather than being choppy in a spunky, tousled way, her hair was left shapeless. The dark brown dye job wasn’t doing anything to save the look either. So, it was later changed to a darker shade of blonde, though it wasn’t very helpful. Far from being editorial, the cut and color aged her. How she wasn’t up in arms about this makeover and actually accepted it with grace is beyond us.

#23: Ava’s Mullet

In theory, this makeover from Cycle 22 should have worked. With Ava Capra’s prominent facial structure – especially those high cheekbones – a mullet wasn’t a bad idea. However, the execution was where it all went wrong. The cut was all over the place, and the blonde to brown wasn’t anything special. Although Ava was more than happy with the style, even eager to, quote, ‘rock it’, the vibe simply wasn’t there. Calling it a ‘model mullet’ didn’t make it high fashion, and fans were disappointed to say the least. Ava’s performance started deteriorating soon after, and she was eventually eliminated.

#22: Brandy’s Big Chop

This Cycle 4 diva was excited to find out that her assigned makeover would allow her to get rid of her signature red afro. Brandy Rusher’s hair was cut extremely short, and the color was toned down to a lighter shade of red. At first, she welcomed the change with open arms. However, when she had to bleach her eyebrows so they matched her new hair, Rusher became concerned about how her then-boyfriend would react to her look. Tyra later called the model out for being difficult when she ended up in the bottom two in episode two. Though she survived that elimination, she didn’t make it far in the competition.

#21: Jael’s Last-Minute Pixie

In the late model’s own words, this makeover left her ‘traumatized’. Originally, Jael Strauss was set to transform from a blonde beauty to a long-haired brunette. For that, she spent eight hours in the salon chair, getting a weave installed. It was a painful process, but halfway down the line, Jay Manuel decided a pixie cut would be more suitable for her. As the hairdressers started removing the weave, Jael broke down in tears. Ultimately, she accepted her “Rosemary’s Baby”-inspired pixie, and Mr. Jay hyped her up. Still, the look wasn’t exactly a showstopper.

#20: Ivana's Chop

From a bright, charismatic personality to the glums, this model’s haircut shifted her energy for the worse. In the 24th season of ANTM, Ivana Thomas’ personality was defined by her independence and intellect. When it was time for makeovers, Tyra decided a short look would work best for Ivana. Sitting in the stylist chair, she was unable to hold back the tears, bracing herself for the change. Unable to own it, it cost her her place in the competition. Panelist Drew Elliott told her after the elimination that embracing full confidence in herself was the best way for her to up her modeling game.

#19: Elina's Big Red Weave

You know it’s a little bit worrying when Jay Manuel’s comforting you by letting you know that your natural hair is still accessible… under the new weave, that is. Starting the show with lustrous dark locks, Cycle 11’s Elina Ivanova was not happy about her makeover. She hated the thought of losing control and felt like the red curls as prescribed by Tyra didn’t represent her in the way she wanted. While it didn’t hold her back from placing fifth in the competition, you gotta wonder what Tyra was thinking. With such a beautiful, versatile model, they could have gone anywhere… and they went to the circus.

#18: Kari's Ice Blonde Weave

In Cycle 21, Kari Calhoun was a gorgeous brunette who arguably didn’t need a big change. But when Tyra gets excited, there’s no pulling back. She prescribed a starkly blonde weave, and bleached eyebrows. AKA… a lot. As one of her fellow contestants remarked, it was like she was a totally different person, and Kari herself thought she looked cheap. Her tears told us that something more fundamental was affected. Who wouldn’t feel lost when their visual identity changes that much? Kari managed to put her poker face on and give a fierce photo shoot. While we all know this is an expected part of the show, this just didn’t feel okay, making it one of the most uncomfortable makeovers yet.

#17: Stacy-Ann's Feathered Faux-Hawk

Stacy-Ann Fequiere bounced into Cycle 10, lighting up the judges with effortless positivity. When it came time for her makeover, Tyra dropped the news in a condescending high voice, mocking Stacy-Ann’s natural octave. Which in and of itself was already awful. But… the hair was coming off to shape a mohawk-esque-faux-hawk! While she longed for Naomi Campbell’s long locks, to Stacy-Ann’s credit, she embraced the look for bringing out her features. She did pull off a killer photo, but as you can hear in her tone of voice, overall, she wasn’t exactly in love with her new look.

#16: Sara’s Short Cut

Notable for a much more sedate makeover round, Cycle 6 still had one dissatisfied customer. Scouted by a producer while working as a Marketing Assistant, modelling was not Sara’s Plan A, and the judges took to questioning her passion early on. But she proved them wrong, steadily upping her game, and placing fourth. The makeover episode saw her blonde locks shorn short with a heavier front. She just did not love her new look, which was definitely out of her comfort zone. Her foray into modeling segued into a very impressive law career; she now works for the U.S. Department of Justice. We won’t be going near her with scissors anytime soon!

#15: Amanda’s Ice Blonde Hair

We all know that styling for models can be more strange than glorious. And as you can tell from this list, a good chunk of that trophy can be claimed by this very competition. When Cycle 3’s Amanda Swafford came sashaying into Top Model town, Tyra just couldn’t resist. Her darker locks went full blown Scandinavian. The results were definitely striking, and even though her ice-cold blues popped, responses were split. While she did go on to place as second runner-up, we’re still scratching our heads wondering if this fantasy makeover was more glamorous or Gandalf.

#14: Christina’s Green Dip

Less “wow” and more “what”, Christina Anderson-McDonald’s highlighter-do left us all wondering just...what...happened. Coming into the competition as the oldest contestant in her cycle, Christina instantly found life at the shared house with the other models… tricky, to say the least. She had beef with Brendi K, and when Tyra told her that she should wear make-up, she took it more to heart than mind. Her makeover, what effectively looked like a dip in green goo, ended up personified in the glower she gave the camera for that week’s shoot. Compensation? Not so much. The best photo sadly speaks less “top model” and more green-eyed, ahem, haired monster.

#13: Brenda's Buzz Cut

Sometimes, you need to make a mistake twice. Flashback to Brenda Arens, a lusciously long redhead from Cycle 14. Originally, she seemed game to embrace her makeover moment. But smiles turned to tears as her hairdresser just kept cutting. The result? An ‘80s style mohawk that just didn’t suit her. Stylist Sally appeared to come to the rescue at a second session, only to…cut shorter, of course! Meanwhile, Brenda’s castmates watched in unsupportive silence. Following her elimination from the show, Brenda played it real, saying even her first haircut was better than the second. But what was ultimately soul-destroying is Jay Manuel saying he thought she would have gotten further in the competition had she not been so emotionally attached to her hair!

#12: Ann’s Chunky Highlights

“This picture for me looks like nothing.” Ouch. Harsh words from judge Nigel Barker in Cycle 3. But let’s rewind a little. What exactly was going on with Ann Markley’s highlights? Coming into the show as a sweet brunette, the judges thought she had one of the best faces, but not enough oomph. So someone had the bright idea to switch it up a little. Unfortunately, the results were grossly colored blonde streaks that did nothing for Ann. Or probably not anyone else. Ever. Let’s be honest: if it happened at our salon, we’d be leaving a dangerous Yelp review. Ann went on to finish fourth in her cycle.

#11: Jaeda's Pixie Cut

“You can cut my hair off, I don’t care.” Famous last words of a beautiful model about to lose her locks...and her cool. Cycle 7’s Jaeda seemed game to dive into whatever change was coming her way. That is, until the Halle Berry-inspired pixie cut envisioned for her was revealed, bringing on the waterworks. While we think Jaeda looked amazing with her new do, she wasn’t convinced that her strong jawline could take it. The trauma of the process itself made it one of the worst makeover moments to behold. However, we can confirm that Jaeda’s long hair has since returned. She’s still modelling, and has a gorgeous family to boot. Iconic breakdown aside, it seems like a very happy ending.

#10: Cassandra Jean’s Mia Farrow Cut

One of the most iconic haircuts in cinema has to be Mia Farrow’s pixie cut from “Rosemary’s Baby.” In theory, it was great style to replicate on a model with such a strong bone structure like cycle 5 contestant Cassandra Jean, but the Southern beauty pageant queen was devastated over losing her long locks. She went along with the cut and the dye job initially, but when they wanted to cut another inch off, she absolutely refused, saying that she didn’t want them to change her too much. It seemed like a weird hill to die on considering most of her hair was gone anyway, but she stuck to her guns and was sent home.

#9: Shei's Two-Toned Hair

It’s probably not the best idea to make someone look like a terrifying cartoon villain. But that’s exactly what Tyra did with Shei Phan, a cycle 21 contestant, who was given two-toned hair: half black and half blonde. Looking like Cruella de Vil herself, Shei’s hair seemed like something that would look cool in an Instagram picture, but way too out there in real life. It didn’t help that the hairstylist even dyed her eyebrows to match her hair so it looked as if she only had the black one, since the blonde hairs blended into her skin. Shei was a good sport about it though, and seemed to embrace it.

#8: Laura's Patriotic Makeover

Nothing is ever subtle on reality TV, and many times, people take things too literally. At least, that’s what we assume happened with the Cycle 18: British Invasion. In that season, Americans were pitted against the British to see who would reign supreme. To turn up the patriotism, Laura was given red and blue streaks on bleached blonde hair to mimic the American flag. The thought process behind it might have made the tiniest bit of sense, but the chunky streaks looked weird, amateurish, and definitely didn’t scream top model.

#7: Marvita's Horsetail Mullet

Poor Marvita didn’t deserve this. During the cycle 10 makeovers, Tyra kept the girls in the dark about what makeover they were getting. When Marvita sat down in the hairdresser’s chair, she was surprised to see hair extensions nearby. Only then did Tyra reveal in a pre-taped segment that she would be getting a “horse mane hair weave,” a style Tyra admitted to making up. Tyra even neighed when she gleefully revealed Marvita’s makeover inspiration. The result was less of a horse mane and more of an ‘80s hair band mullet. It looked ridiculous and not even Marvita’s strong features could pull it off.

#6: Phil's Jesus Extensions

When ANTM let men into the contest, it was exciting to see what makeovers they’d give the guys. But then Phil happened and proved they could make a man look just as awful as they do for some of the women. Tyra wanted to see longer hair on Phil, so he was given very cheap-looking extensions that had people comparing him to Jesus. The straggly hair was distracting and took away from his good looks. Phil looked more like a Coachella punch-line than a model, so we’re glad he later took out the extensions and grew his natural hair out.

#5: Saleisha's Mushroom Bob

Cycle 9 contestant, Saleisha Stowers is already one of the most controversial ANTM winners out there because of her previous connection to Tyra before the season started, but the real question is: how did someone with Dora the Explorer hair make it that far? Saleisha’s mushroom bob and glorified bowl cut was meant to give the commercial model an edgier look, but instead it made her appear younger, as if her mom gave her that haircut in the kitchen. Many compared her look to the Beatles gone wrong, and any way you cut it, it was bad. Just bad.

#4: Molly's Giant Blonde Weave

There have been some pretty harrowing weave experiences on ANTM but few, if any, compare to Molly’s unbelievably bad hairdo. After assigning big blonde curls to Molly, a weave specialist was brought in to sew it onto her fine hair. The process of getting her hair done was a tangle of braids, thread, and extensions that looked more akin to a bird’s nest than a high fashion look, and the finished product wasn’t any better. The added hair had to weigh as much as Molly herself. The salon owner tried to trim it down, but it was no use. Molly was understandably upset, and the hair led to a lot of drama until it was re-done.

#3: Denzel's Fake Beard

For the most part, the male contestants get pretty tame looks compared to the female contestants, but Denzel’s fake beard made every other makeover pale in comparison. They put a lace front weave on this man’s face. A lace front weave. Just let that sink in. The weave was a completely different texture from his natural hair, and the contrast showed. It looked wholly unnatural, ridiculous, and like it would fall off at any moment. The makeover was roasted on social media and still lives on in Internet infamy.

#2: Brittany's Red Clown Weave

Unfair or not, big red hair often brings up associations with clown hair. Clearly, Tyra wasn’t trying to channel Bozo the Clown for Brittany Hatch’s makeover, but that’s exactly what she got. Brittany’s original hairdo of short curls looked way more modelesque than the pile of red straw they attached to her head. The hair was brittle looking, frizzy, and puffy. And it clearly looked like a weave, which defeats the whole purpose of getting the hairstyle professionally done.

#1: Chelsey's Widened Tooth Gap

For the most part, the makeovers they give contestants aren’t permanent—hair grows back, a weave can be taken out, and eyebrows can be dyed back. But the makeover team crossed that line when Tyra decided that the gap between Chelsey’s two front teeth needed to be made bigger so that she had more of a Lauren Hutton look. To emulate the legendary model, Chelsey was taken to a dentist where they actually shaved around a millimeter off each front tooth. While we like the idea of accentuating someone’s unique trait, this was a bridge too far.

Do you think any of these makeovers were actually good? Tell us in the comments!