“What in the Willy Wonka?”: Tyra Banks is hawking “hot ice cream” and everyone is confused

Tyra Banks is back in entrepreneur mode, and this time, she’s trying to make “hot ice cream” happen. The former supermodel and America’s Next Top Model host recently launched a line of sippable desserts through her sMiZE & Dream shops, claiming to have invented the world’s first “hot ice cream.”

Tyra Banks’ groundbreaking invention: Hot ice cream

It’s not a latte or hot chocolate. It’s very important to Banks that you understand this. In her confectionery shops around the world, she’s pushing ice cream lovers to try it hot and sippable.

“This is my favorite ice cream flavor, and I’ve been working on making it hot for a year,” she said in a TikTok video in September. “And no, I’m not talking about me in a swimsuit in the 90s.”

@smizeanddream Introducing… the world’s first HOT ice cream experience. Not a latte. Not a hot chocolate. But your favorite scoops, transformed into liquid. hot. ice cream. Sippable, baby. ✨ After countless rounds in Tyra’s R&D kitchen, we nailed it – the texture, the mouthfeel, a whole new way to experience ice cream. We call it HOT MAMA 🙌 Because mamas (and mama figures) hustle hard – and deserve to indulge in a little hotness for themselves. The very first drop? “TYRA’S FAVORITE”. One of the best ice creams in town… with toasted pecans, caramel butter, and salted cream. You’ve licked it cold… now sip it hot. Available NOW at our Darling Harbour flagship in Sydney. Cool cones. Hot cups. Get them both. ⏳ You’ve got 7 days. Then it’s gone. #SMiZEandDREAM #icecreamsydney #sydneyfood ♬ original sound – SMiZE & DREAM

“I’m talking about hot ice cream—something that has not been done before.”

Watching this, one might assume that the ice cream is spicy. However, that has been done before. What she’s talking about might have only been done in the dorm rooms of some of the most stoned college students on campus.

It’s the same ice cream she’s been selling in her shop sMiZe & Dream since the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, but heated up until you could chug it. It comes in a cup topped with whipped cream and various features of the flavor you choose, like caramel, nuts, or sprinkles.

@smizeanddream Our super-popular Fairy Dough Diva ice cream just got a HOT makeover… and she drops TODAY! 🔥✨ Meet the Fairy Dough Diva HOT MAMA 💖… she’s reimagined as hot ice cream, love. Silky, smooth, and sippable-warm — and no, she’s not melted ice cream — she’s a hot original, not a hot mess. 😉🍦 This Diva is TyTy’s innovation in a couture SMiZE cup — buttery vanilla biscuit–infused hot cream, topped with Chantilly, rainbow hundreds & thousands, and finished with a slice of our super-buttery house-made fairy dough crunch biscuit. 🌈 This Diva is in demand — but only for ONE WEEK. After that? Poof. Her curtain will close. 👑🔥 Catch her now at our Darling Harbour flagship in Sydney. ✨ #sydneyfood #SMiZEandDREAM #icecreamsydney ♬ original sound – SMiZE & DREAM

“Liquid, warm, soothing, yummy, silky,” Banks describes.

You could also top that with one of her house-made cookies.

Tyra started her ice cream career in Los Angeles, but has opened shops in many other locations, including Washington, D.C. That one ended up as a campaign stop for former Vice President Kamala Harris in 2024. Her newest location is in Sydney, Australia, where the cold season is coming to a close.

Fans say they can’t tell if this is real life, a troll, or a fever dream

Fans of Banks, ice cream, and anyone who somehow falls outside of those two categories seem confused. Some are having trouble getting their minds around the concept at all, while others don’t understand why the supermodel thinks she has something.

With all the TikTok reactions, the hashtag #hoticecream already has 487 videos.

@steve_jobs_gay_son ♬ original sound – :^)

“I guess I’m just really confused about Tyra Banks … making hot ice cream that she’s really seemingly manic about,” said TikToker @steve_jobs_gay_son. “She like ‘hot ice cream, it’s never been done before!’ It seems [like] hot milk, flavored hot milk.”

“I have had a cold for the past several days, so I’m not convinced that what I just saw was not a fever dream of my mind’s own creation,” joked @danimattie.

“I can’t determine what’s real and what’s not real anymore.”

Others had thoughts about the wacky things people get up to when they have too much money.

@hannahoopope Thank you Tyra ! #hoticecream #tyrabanks #fyp #foryou #foryoupage ♬ Mario 64 – Dire Dire Docks – Devin Taylor

“If only more rich people took note from Tyra and started solving the world’s problems like she is,” @hannahoopope said, sarcastically. “Like the fact that ice cream was too cold in the southern hemisphere. It needs to be hot. Thank you, Tyra!”

Confusion is also the dominant vibe in the comments on Banks’ videos.

“One thing about Tyra is she’s gonna confuse the hell out of you,” remarked @a.j.c_1.

“What in the Willy Wonka is taking place?” asked @najlanouveau.