Tyra Banks Doubles Down Former Landlord's Extortion Claims With Sanction Demands

Tyra Banks isn't letting her former landlord get away scot-free after he filed a lawsuit against her.

The legal drama between the model and her former landlord began in October 2025, when a man named Christopher Powell sued her and longtime partner, Louis Bélanger-Martin.

At the time, Tyra Banks did everything within her power to dismiss the case, even accusing the building owner of extortion. Now, she wants Christopher Powell to pay the price for daring to sue her in the first place.

According to new reports, Banks is seeking more than $50,000 in sanctions from Powell after he tried to drag her to court. She accused him of attempting a "celebrity shakedown" with the lawsuit, noting his past demands for an excess of $2.8 million in damages were outrageous.

The legal documents reported by TMZ saw Banks imploring the court to send a warning to Powell through sanctions. She argued that he deserved to be punished for making her defend herself in the first place with his bogus lawsuit.

Banks' filing comes months after Powell willingly dismissed the case back in December 2025. The drama between the pair stemmed from the model's botched attempt to open a branch of her ice cream company, Smize & Dream, inside Powell's building in Washington, D.C.

The Blast covered the lawsuit drama, reporting that Powell had demanded an excess of $2.8 million in damages from Banks and her longtime partner, Bélanger-Martin. The building owner sued the pair for breach of contract, arguing that he lost thousands of dollars because of them.

According to Powell, Banks and her partner had signed a 10-year commercial lease for a spot in his building to open a branch of the model's ice cream company. The spot was meant to serve as an ice cream shop and a learning center for the underserved youth in Washington.

They signed the agreement in April 2024, with Powell claiming that he immediately met with architects and designers, received various machines and supplies, to meet Banks' demands. However, she backed out of the deal in June 2024 without a tangible reason and refused to uphold the lease.

Powell noted that he lost thousands of dollars fixing the spot and getting supplies to facilitate the opening of Banks' ice cream shop, yet she and her partner did not fulfill their end of the bargain. Powell believed they would at least uphold the lease and sublet the building, but the pair wanted to exit without making any payments.

Banks argued that she and Bélanger-Martin backed out of the contract because Powell had promised them the entire building; however, he refuted these claims with evidence. Next, the media personality filed another motion accusing Powell of extortion.

On the other hand, Powell argued that Banks and Bélanger-Martin had fabricated grievances to justify the breach of contract. Additionally, he accused Banks of weaponizing her celebrity influence to stop him from filing a lawsuit against her.

Last month, Banks made waves for her ice cream brand after declaring that she wanted it to become her legacy. The Blast reported that she dropped the shocking statement during an appearance on "The Jermaine Plane" show.

Banks reflected on her career during the interview, claiming that she did not want modeling to be her legacy. She believed her achievements as a model and a woman of color who paved the way for others in the industry should be kept in a box.

Instead, Banks hoped that people would remember her as "the ice cream lady." She raved about ice cream being her passion, recalling how it shaped the core of her favorite memories with her mother. "The real legacy I want it to be ice cream. I really do," Banks declared.

Besides the lawsuit drama, Banks has been making headlines for the new Netflix documentary, "Reality Check: Inside America's Next Top Model." The show was a deep dive into the behind-the-scenes drama of the popular program created by Banks.

Jay Manuel, one of the stars of the show, opened up in episode three about his complicated relationship with Banks. The Blast reported that he had feared his career was on the line after emailing Banks about his desire to quit following the completion of the show's cycle eight in 2007.

Manuel recalled that Banks ghosted him for three days before replying with her disappointment. Then, the showrunners stressed that he couldn't leave until cycle nine because they needed more time to find his replacement. Unfortunately, he was forced to endure an uncomfortable silence because Banks refused to speak to him.

Will Tyra Banks' motion for sanctions be granted?