In a setting like "Alice in Wonderland", the candidates complete a photo shoot. A lavishly laid table is set up in a garden, at which the models sit. The special feature: they wear crazy hats with which they are supposed to present themselves in front of photographer Brian Bowen Smith's camera. Elsa has a white model with an animal on her head, but she's not sure if it's a swan, a duck or a goose. Other participants can choose to decorate with a peacock, a cat or a flamingo. Anya ("You look like something out of a movie. You rocked it.") and Ida ("She's amazing. It looks like a 'Vogue' cover.") received special praise from the photographer. Vivien was the least convincing and Eliz.
The fairytale setting encourages Heidi Klum to give a curious summary of her show. The 49-year-old thinks GNTM is like a fairy tale. She talks about her 21 contestants who compete to be the most beautiful in the country, but only bicker after a while. She calls herself Queen, her guest judge is the Prince - a couple that decides everything in the end. For the people, i.e. the spectators, it is all a big spectacle. But, according to Klum, "unfortunately, the fairy tale doesn't have a happy ending for everyone."
They try to wrap it up nicely, but it is tantamount to being thrown out: Anya is asked by her eight roommates in the model villa to find another room to sleep in. The 19-year-old would allegedly not fit the group and spoil everyone's mood. "It's like being in a toxic relationship. If you don't get along with the other person, you don't want to see that person all the time," Ida says. Anya can't really understand the decision, but accepts it with composure. She agrees to move to another room for a few days first, but wants the option to come back.
At her side, Heidi Klum welcomes the Swiss designer Yannik Zamboni this time. The 36-year-old founded his label Maison Blanche in 2020 and two years later won the Klum-hosted show Making The Cut. Zamboni's creations are flashy and revealing. During catwalk training in the model villa, he gives the candidates precise instructions on how to present his fashion: self-confident, tough and don't use your hips. An announcement that not everyone can implement in the final decision. The presentation will take place at Los Angeles Union Station, a public train station facility. Some find it strange that the participants in the daring outfits sometimes walk half-naked in front of travelers. The designer sends Cassy and Somajia down the catwalk with bare buttocks. But 21-year-old Somajia believes: "I want to be a model and that's part of it."
Emilia, Eliz and Zoey have to leave the show. Heidi Klum justified her decision by saying that all three needed too many instructions for the photo shoot and couldn't convince on the catwalk either. "A strong will is not enough to become 'Germany's next top model'," says the 49-year-old. The spark just didn't fly.
"She walks like she peed her pants" (Heidi Klum about Tracy in the decision)
