Runway coach and television personality Miss J Alexander revealed he is still relearning to walk more than three years after suffering a stroke in December 2022, an event that left him in a coma for five weeks. The revelation came in Netflix’s novel docuseries, Reality Check: Inside America’s Next Top Model, which explores the history of the long-running modeling competition.
According to the docuseries, Miss J, whose real name is Alexander Jenkins, experienced the stroke on December 27, 2022. He recounted waking up in the hospital, unable to speak or move. “I spent five weeks in a coma and I couldn’t walk and I couldn’t talk,” he said in the series. He subsequently spent a year and five months in the hospital focusing on recovery.
The stroke and its aftermath were largely kept private until the release of the docuseries. Miss J shared footage from his hospital room, documenting his struggle to regain basic motor skills. He expressed emotional distress over his condition, admitting, “It was emotional. I cried. I am not ashamed to say that I cried.”
Former America’s Next Top Model colleagues Jay Manuel and Nigel Barker visited Miss J during his hospitalization, offering support. “I don’t know whether he even wanted me to spot him that way. I was going to go see him,” Barker said in the docuseries, describing the shock and fear he felt upon learning of Miss J’s condition. “That was just such a terrible shock and really upsetting and horrifying, and scary.” Manuel added that he could sense Miss J’s distress and struggled to comprehend the situation.
America’s Next Top Model, which aired from 2003 to 2018, featured Tyra Banks as host, with Jay Manuel serving as creative director and Miss J and Nigel Barker as judges. The three remained in contact after leaving the show, and their bond was reaffirmed during Miss J’s health crisis.
When asked whether Tyra Banks had visited him in the hospital, Miss J responded, “No, not yet. She just sent me a text that she wants to come and visit me… But no… not yet.”
Despite the challenges, Miss J remains determined to regain his mobility. “I miss being the queen of the runway. I am the person who taught models how to walk and now I can’t walk. Not yet. I am determined to walk. I am sure you are going to see me again. It’s not over for me yet,” he stated in the docuseries. His former colleagues expressed encouragement, noting his progress in speech and physical therapy.
“You’re speaking so much better now,” Manuel observed. Barker added, “You are battling through. When we first saw you in that hospital, you could hardly move, hardly talk. Now you’re sitting up doing an interview, chatting, talking, rolling your eyes and making us laugh.”
