The reason behind Heidi Klum’s exit from Project Runway

Season 21 of Project Runway premiered on July 31, 2025. The new season saw Nina Garcia and Law Roach as the judges. It saw Heidi Klum, the veteran judge of the show, making a comeback as the host. She had left the show after judging on it for 16 seasons, and fans wondered what made her leave.

According to Freejobalert, Heidi left the show because she faced creative differences with the makers. While she was brimming with new ideas for the show, they resisted them. Tim Gunn, another mentor on Project Runway who worked alongside Heidi, also left the show for the same reason.

The two of them then pitched their own series called Making the Cut to Amazon. It premiered in 2020 and has released 3 seasons ever since, with the latest one released in 2022.

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Why Heidi Klum left Project Runway after season 16

For 16 seasons of the show, fans saw Heidi Klum and Tim Gunn as the judges. They mentored the designers, asked them to make essential changes to get them to the top of their games, and judged them based on their talent and calibre. After they both left the show, it never felt the same because they had become synonymous with the series.

According to Freejobalert, both the veteran judges left because they had creative differences with the production.

"Imagination was bigger than what we were allowed to do," said Heidi on the show.

She also said that it was the "same old" format the makers wanted to stick to, while her plans were different. The website revealed that after the show changed the channel from Lifetime to Bravo in 2018, Heidi asked Tim if he wanted to leave with her, and he agreed. The two of them then pitched their own fashion competition called Making the Cut to Amazon.

According to Heidi, Amazon was a better platform, not just for her but for the aspiring designers as well. She stated that she decided to leave after asking the producers to change things for years. The producers didn't want to implement those things, so she thought she could use her ideas elsewhere. Tim also confirmed that while the producers did want to change, they resisted the implementation.

After they left the show, they didn't return because the producers didn't ask them to come back. Instead, they replaced them with new hosts and judges. Despite leaving the show for good, Heidi still posts throwback pictures of her time on Project Runway on her Instagram. Recently, ahead of the new season, Heidi posted behind-the-scenes pictures of her time on the show and wrote,

"Back to where it all began—excited for this new season!"

Fans of the show and the supermodel filled the comment section with love and anticipation to see her again.

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More on Heidi Klum from Project Runway

Heidi grew up in Germany and was raised by a father who worked in perfume production and a mother who worked as a hairdresser. Her career took off after she won a national modeling competition at 18 years of age. She also hosted a German show called Germany's Next Top Model because of her German roots.

Even after becoming an American sensation, the Project Runway judge didn't forget her German roots and her beginnings, and often reminds people of it. She posts pictures of her visits to her hometown in Germany, stating that her heart is where her home is.

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For more updates on Heidi Klum, fans of Project Runway can follow her official Instagram, @heidiklum.

Edited by Shweta Zaveri