What to know
- Coco Rocha takes on triple duties as host, judge and executive producer in the revived Project Runway Canada, marking her first return to fashion TV in more than a decade.
- The supermodel says Canada’s design identity lies in diversity, not uniformity, highlighting the cultural influences and global backgrounds shaping the season’s contestants.
- Rocha describes the new season as ambitious, emotional and surprisingly fierce, promising standout talent, unexpected drama and a renewed spotlight on underrated Canadian designers.
Project Runway Canada is officially back. And this time, Coco Rocha is steering the runway. The international supermodel is taking on triple duties as host, judge and executive producer for the revived series, which premiered Nov. 14 on Crave.
It marks a significant return to fashion television for Rocha, who hasn’t sat in a mentor or judging seat in more than a decade, and signals a renewed push to spotlight Canadian design talent on a national stage.
It’s the kind of full-circle role that asks her to draw on every facet of her career: runway veteran, mentor, critic, and advocate.
“When I got the phone call saying, ‘Would you take this job?’ I have not been on a TV show as a judge and mentor for a good 13 years,” Rocha told Now Toronto. “So I’ve been saving this special opportunity for something very special.”
“I think it’s a very poignant time to have a show like this in Canada, where we can showcase talent here, not feeling like we have to go off abroad and find international talent. We have some exceptional designers here, so it is a very special show to showcase the talent that some people never knew they had,” she added.
A REVIVAL SHAPED BY CANADIAN AMBITION
Rocha is well aware that the word “Canadian” comes with its clichés: polite, soft-spoken, drama-free. She insists viewers shouldn’t be fooled.
“We all know that everyone’s gonna say we’re nice, we’re kind to each other. But there are days that these designers… it’s a competition for $100,000 and to have a spread in Elle Canada. They clearly want that,” she noted.
As a result, courtesy only goes so far.
“There’s gonna be moments that they’re not very Canadian-esque,” she laughed.
“They have a drive and a passion to win this thing. You will see some drama, you’ll see some spiciness, but at the same time, they really want this. And I think that’s what makes a great show.”
And yet, beneath the rivalry, she noticed something unique from other fashion competitions she’s worked on.
“When I would see them come into rooms, they came as a team. They were very much supporting each other,” she said.
RETHINKING CANADIAN FASHION
When asked what Canadian fashion looks like in 2025, Rocha refuses to flatten it into a single definition.
“In this day and age, there are too many opinions, too many ideas. I think a lot of designers get lost in that.”
Instead, she hopes the series reveals Canada’s true strength: its plurality.
“I am hoping that people can recognize in the Canadian fashion space that they are taking inspiration from their heritage, from their families, from their background. Canada has so many beautiful people from so many parts of the world here. So I think you’re going to see, especially on our show, a range of ideas.”
“I never want to put a whole country into one thought. This is what you would very much see. I hope you see variety.”
It’s a telling statement, and one that feels almost like a quiet rebuttal to decades of commentary that Canada lacks a cohesive fashion identity. For Rocha, the lack of a single signature is the very thing that makes the Canadian fashion landscape so special.
Rocha said she entered the season with high expectations. She’s walked for the biggest names, starred in major campaigns, and taught runway and posing techniques to new models around the world. But what the designers delivered in their first challenge stunned her.
“Honestly, after that first challenge… I even shocked myself,” she admitted. “I was amazed at they only had days to create something that was so detailed, so unique and special to each one of them.”
“If it shocked me — a model of 20-some years who has been exposed to this industry and all sorts of places — I’m sure it’s going to really surprise and amaze people that maybe have never experienced fashion the way they’re going to see it.”
THE PRODUCER’S SEAT
Hosting and judging came naturally; Rocha has done versions of both before. But stepping in as executive producer allowed her to influence the revival of the show with intention.
“Executive producer was very important to me,” she said. “I wanted to make sure that there was this element of understanding the fashion space — not just making Fashion TV, but fashion space.”
For the many viewers who grew up watching Rocha on runways, it’s a rare glimpse of how she conceives of fashion beyond glamour, as an economy, a cultural force, and a craft.
“We aren’t just creating something to make people laugh about this industry, but to be educated by it and to respect it too,” she explained.
“It’s a multi-billion-dollar industry where these designers can be the face of it, and we are looking for the next generation.”
For all the industry intensity, Rocha’s creative compass points toward joy.
“Humour keeps me creatively inspired,” she said simply. “I do take it seriously as a job, but I want people to notice through my angle, my point of view, that it’s also relatable and can be fun.”
She calls fashion “a place of expression… a place of wonder and fun,” and it’s clear she’s determined to protect that spirit.
Rocha sees Project Runway Canada not just as entertainment, but as a platform that can open doors.
“We have some gems that you’ve never noticed before,” she says. “But you will now.”
