Atlanta ‘Grady baby’ takes the spotlight on new ‘Project Runway’ season
“Project Runway” has its biggest cast yet this season with 22 contestants, including two from Atlanta.
Jennifer Daniel is the first former “Runway” model to compete as a designer, while Octavius Terry is a former mortgage banker and real estate agent who found his calling in design.
Season 22 debuted last Friday on Freeform and Hulu/Disney+ streaming, and will air weekly. Daniel was eliminated on the first episode.
Atlanta has had plenty of success on “Runway” in the past, including Season 6 “All Stars” winner Anthony Williams and other notable contestants like Ken Laurence, Edmond Newton and the late Mychael Knight.
Here are thumbnails of each of the two newest Atlanta contestants, both of whom spoke to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.
Octavius Terry
Born and raised: Atlanta. He is a “Grady baby” who grew up in the Carver Homes public housing projects, which were torn down in 1998. He graduated from Creekside High School in 1992 and became a track star at Georgia Tech, which inducted him into its Sports Hall of Fame in 2006. He almost made the U.S. track team as a hurdler for the 1996 Atlanta Olympics but instead ended up supervising housing for the athletes. “I saw my former teammates there,” he said. “It was painful.”
Age: 53
First career: Banking. He spent several years at Wachovia managing finances for wealthy clients, including some celebrities in Los Angeles.
Career switch: At age 36, he left banking and enrolled in the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising in Los Angeles. “I had never touched a sewing machine up to that point,” he said. “But creativity was always in my heart. I was barely able to get out of Tech but at FIDM, I was summa cum laude.”
Early success: His wealth management connections helped him land clients for his suits, including a white tux “Moonlight” writer Tarell McCraney wore at the Oscars. That led to work with other big names such as R&B singer Ray J, Los Angeles Lakers coach Derek Fisher, “Queer Eye” host Karamo Brown and pro dancer Mark Ballas.
Back to Atlanta: In 2017, he joined the Art Institute of Atlanta as a fashion program chair but the school shut down in 2023. He segued into real estate.
Tragedy led him back to fashion: Two years ago, his fiance died in a car accident. “I was just trying to find my purpose again in the middle of grief,” he said. “I was in a dark place. So in 2024, I got back into fashion. I know he would want me to live my life like there was no tomorrow. And now that I’m 53, I want to show that age is just a number. You can continue to pivot and be successful and live your dreams.” He now has his own bags and a bomber jacket for sale on his website shoptoctavius.com.
First episode result: With a record 22 contestants and Octavius landing in the middle in the first signature look challenge, he got virtually zero airtime. “Using broad prints is what I’m known for,” Octavius said on the show. The judges gave his first look mixed reviews. “I like the fabric,” host and judge Heidi Klum said. “It’s heavy,” Law Roach said. “It’s OK. It’s not terrible,” added Nina Garcia.
Jennifer Daniels
Age: 39
Why she moved to Atlanta from New York City in 2025: “Why live in a cold, dark, depressing place when you can be where it’s sunny and beautiful? Most of my family had left New York and had gone to Florida. I wanted to be closer. And I already had a little circle of friends in Atlanta. Plus, I travel a lot and the airport is convenient. I now live in the Old Fourth Ward. I love it!”
Design specialty: avant-garde and evening wear
A first for “Runway”: She is the first former “Project Runway” model to come back as a contestant. She spent four different seasons on the show, she said, more than a decade ago. “It’s a unique experience seeing both sides of it. A lot of the people in hair and makeup are my friends. I think I had a friendly edge because I knew the workings of it all.”
Her commentary on the show: “‘Project Runway’ is my dream show. I definitely think I deserve to be here. I have put in the work the last 15 years. I also want to show people outside the modeling world that I exist and what I can do.”
First episode result: She was the first contestant eliminated with her first impression look. The judges found her design derivative, especially Nina Garcia.
Her reaction to being cut: “I did not expect to be the first to go, and that sucks, but I did think I was going to be on the bottom.”
On Octavius: “I quickly became a fan of his work. He does things I cannot do yet. I hope to learn. It’s fun to have somebody so close by. He lives 10 minutes from me. We can hang now!”