*Miss J Alexander, the legendary runway coach from “America’s Next Top Model,” shared a deeply personal story in Netflix’s docuseries “Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model.” The 67-year-old revealed that he suffered a stroke in 2022 that left him unable to walk or talk, spending five weeks in a coma and over a year in the hospital.
“On December 27th of 2022, I had a stroke. I woke up. I didn’t know where I was other than in the hospital,” Alexander said in the documentary, per PEOPLE. “I spent five weeks in a coma, and I couldn’t walk. And I couldn’t talk. And I thought to myself, what was I going to do?” He also candidly admitted that he cried throughout his health journey.
Alexander’s career as a catwalk coach made the stroke especially painful. Known for teaching models how to walk on the runway from ANTM cycles 1 through 18, he also served as a judge and shared his expertise internationally. Tyra Banks personally recruited him for the show because he taught her to walk as a teenager. “I miss being the queen of the runway,” Alexander reflected.
“I taught models how to walk. And now I can’t walk.”
Miss J Alexander reveals he suffered a stroke a few years ago — but is determined to walk again.
Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model is now on Netflix. pic.twitter.com/WoQbcL7pPT
— Netflix (@netflix) February 16, 2026
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During his hospitalization, fellow ANTM stars Nigel Barker and Jay Manuel visited, offering emotional support. Barker recalled, “I was going to go see him. And that was just such a terrible shock and really upsetting and horrifying and scary.”
“I taught models how to walk. And now I can’t walk,” Alexander says in the doc.
Despite his current limitations, Alexander remains determined. “I can’t walk. Not yet. Not yet. I’m determined to walk. I’m sure you’re gonna see me again, I’m sure. It’s not over for me yet,” he said.
The docuseries, which examines the behind-the-scenes moments of ANTM and its 24-cycle run from 2003 to 2018, is now streaming on Netflix.
MORE NEWS ON EURWEB.COM: Tyra Banks Admits She Went ‘Too Far’ in ‘America’s Next Top Model’ Docuseries | Watch Trailer
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