The competition is hosted by Heidi Klum , who also serves as the lead judge and executive producer of the show. It is currently the longest-running Top Model adaptation, with a span of 19 years, and the Top Model series with the second-most number of cycles.
The show has faced heavy criticism in Germany due to the treatment of its contestants. Germany's Next Topmodel currently has 19 cycles. Each cycle has ten to 18 episodes and starts with 12β40 contestants. Makeovers are administered to contestants early in the competition, usually after the first or second elimination in the finals.
While America's Next Top Model typically starts with 30 semi-finalists who are cut down to a batch of between ten and 16 contestants, Germany's Next Top Model cycle premieres begin with highlights from the auditions of candidates Cycles 1 and 2 and candidates Cycle 3 , respectively.
The panel challenge in front of the judges on America's Next Top Model is almost always replaced by a runway walk in front of the judges on the German show. In the elimination process on America's Next Top Model , host Tyra Banks hands out a photograph to each of the contestants who are safe, in order of merit.
The bottom two of each episode are called to stand before Banks and are judged individually. The call-out order plays a significant role in determining the best contestant of the weekβa departure from Germany's Next Top Model, where the call-out order does not provide insights into the quality of the contestants' performance, except during the final. Moreover, they are called out one by one while the others are waiting in the backstage lobby. The US contestants are all present.
