ANTM’s Analeigh: “The way they portrayed the girls was pretty accurate”

By: Jen Smith
Fancast.com

Analeigh Tipton made it to the finale of America’s Next Top Model, but was sent home in third place. Analeigh was known as the sweet, nurturing type, but raised a few eyebrows with her touchy-feely relationship with fellow contestant Marjorie. She often used her figure skating background to her advantage with her poses, but it was her acting that really got her noticed.

Fancast talked to Analeigh right after the finale, where she dished about her future in modeling, acting, and how she was portrayed on the show.

How did you feel about McKey’s win?

I was really excited for McKey! I know I would have liked to have seen Sam up there too because I know that Sam put everything she had into it. The final two were both great girls. You couldn’t go wrong honestly. And I think that she’ll work and she’ll do the title proud.

Did you expect to do so well in the competition?

I definitely hoped that I was going to do well, but every week is so nerve-wracking. Every elimination brings new fears of “Oh no– now I have to perform to this level.” You have to push yourself each week so I never knew what to expect and I never knew how well I’d be doing. When I made the final three, it was one of those things where it was like “Oh my goodness, I’m in the top three. That’s absolutely incredible.” I actually got to appreciate how hard I had worked.

Do you think you were portrayed accurately?

I think the way they portrayed the girls was pretty accurate. They definitely focused on certain qualities of each girl, some more than others. Clark really did have a sweet side and they didn’t focus on that at all. They focused intently on my sweet side, and I’m a stronger person than just a peace-loving thing, but they focused on one main attribute on the girls and they didn’t get around to our personality.

Have you thought about going into acting?

I think I will try to pursue both right now. Definitely modeling on the more commercial side. It definitely spills into acting and surely I will get work in acting as well. I love doing both so much. It was kind of ironic that the last thing Tyra said to me was “You should go into acting,” but I was eliminated because of my commercial. It’s definitely good advice but I am strong in acting and modeling, so hopefully I can pursue both.

How did you use your skating background to your advantage?

Throughout the competition I believed my mentality helped me. It was not looking at the other girls to compete with them, but it was competing with myself. In skating, you’re competing against yourself, so I thought that way through the competition. It really helped. Definitely the posing was difficult at first because I took everything so literally, and Mr. J certainly helped turned that around.

After doing so well in the first commercial shoot, how did it feel to not perform at the same level on the last one?

It felt like crap! It was disappointed in myself because I was so excited for the cover girl commercial because I knew that the judges could pick on my face and my poses, but I knew that they liked the way I acted. So I knew I could rock it and I got upset. I couldn’t stop crying and I couldn’t remember the lines for the life of me. Before I had them down so perfectly and then all the pressure and stress hit. It was a terrible moment.

What did you think of Paulina’s comment about your Cover Girl picture looking like a headshot?

Paulina kind of said a few things about my face being too commercial and not strong enough. I think it was hard to hear because it was like, what can I do about it? This is my face, this is what I was given and I will work it as best I can. I happen to like my face. When they say that, it’s not a helpful critique because it’s not “Hey you need to work your angles better” it’s “Well, you just don’t have a good angle.” It’s being able to take that with a grain of salt. Hey maybe I will use it as a headshot for my acting!

Marjorie said during the party that you overreacted. Di you think you were doing the right thing?

The boys were extremely drunk. They were falling down the stairs, they were setting things on fire. It was a mess. Sam was uncomfortable; McKey didn’t know what to do. Marjorie was in a bathtub with her clothes on with a boy who was not having the best intentions for her. I don’t think I overreacted at all. I think overreacting would have been screaming at the top of my lungs for everyone to get out and I didn’t. I have dealt with people that have constantly been drunk in my life and I know how to handle the situation. And I didn’t want to see Marjorie on national television do anything she might regret. I think she did need me in this situation.

Are you more commercial or high fashion?

I like both honestly. I loved doing high fashion for the crazy poses and crazy hair and the makeup and everything. But I think I’m a better commercial model, so I will be pursuing more commercial stuff, but everything mixes in together. Certainly I like both aspects.