The next season of America’s Next Top Model is well under way and already the first real elimination has struck. 18-year-old Justine Biticon was the first elimination of America’s Next Top Model, following the cast being cut from 30 models to just 14. Drew Elliot, one of the new judges on the ANTM revival, sat down with Justine to talk about her elimination and what mistakes she think she made that got her eliminated.
If fans are upset with Justine’s elimination and think America’s Next Top Model made the wrong call, Justine agrees with you. After a bit of prodding by Drew, Justine opened up and admitted that she does think America’s Next Top Model made a mistake by eliminating her first.
“I definitely do (think you made a mistake). It’s funny because you guys didn’t get to see what I was really here for,” she explained. “I wanted to represent the Asian culture and to be someone that little Asian girls could look up because there are not a lot of Asian girls in the modeling industry.”
When Justine was asked which Asian models she looks up to or did look up to as a young girl she struggled. “I know more of actresses than models which shows a lot about the modeling industry,” Justine explained. “There is not a lot. I look up to Lucy Liu and Jaime Chung. I don’t think there are enough. See? I can’t even name a few of them.”
Even though Justine thinks that America’s Next Top Model eliminated her too early, she does recognize that she made a few mistakes and she wasn’t confident enough. Justine explains when she first stood in front of the judges she froze. “I remember when I first went up there — I actually cried before my interview. I cried before my interview because everyone was so nervous. And I was like, ‘Oh my God, these people! How am I going to get into this house with 14 girls? There’s 30 of us! That’s so crazy!'”
If given a chance to return to America’s Next Top Model Justine admits she would change things up. “If I got to come back, I wouldn’t be the little, y’know, 18-year-old that just came out of high school…very giggly. People at home actually know me as a very intimidating and, uh, also very confident person. I believe I would have brought that person out more.”
Justine shared that now that she has been eliminated from ANTM she has gained the confidence to go out to agencies. She is going to try to get something going with a modeling agency following her elimination. If nothing happens within a year she will go to college, which is something her mother wanted her to do anyway rather than go on America’s Next Top Model.
So what do you think of Justine’s elimination? Was it the right choice? Is she too young for the competition? Would you like to see her return eventually? Why do you think she was eliminated?
(Image and video courtesy of VH1)
Contributing Writer, BuddyTV
Derek is a Philadelphia based writer and unabashed TV and comic book junkie. The time he doesn’t spend over analyzing all things nerdy he is working on his resume to be the liaison to the Justice League.
