It seems like everyone in the reality TV universe has been talking about the supposed reality reckoning that may or may not be shaking the industry. After a Vanity Fair article made waves, Impact x Nightline did a whole reality reckoning episode and the two together paint a fascinating picture of the unfolding drama around reality TV stars and their treatment.
The whole concept of a reality reckoning — unionizing and fighting for better treatment of reality stars by the networks— was launched by former Real Housewife of New York, Bethenny Frankel. Bethenny started making TikTok videos suggesting that reality TV stars are being exploited and should unionize and demand better contracts.
This was surprising for some, due to the fact that Bethenny is one of the Bravo universe’s greatest success stories. She started the Real Housewives of New York as a little-known natural food chef and by the time she left the show she had built a massive net worth, between selling her company Skinnygirl for an estimated $100 million and the $40,000 dollars she made per episode she appeared on the show.
Bethenny’s time on the show seemed relatively positive. She doesn’t have any horrifically embarrassing moments to live down, she made out like a bandit financially, and even went back to the network to try to pitch a new show in early 2023.
So why is she so bitter and angry with Bravo? Is it the fact that she genuinely feels exploited, or is she using other reality stars and their gripes as fuel for a grudge against a network that no longer puts her in the spotlight? Or, even more simply, is she just doing anything she can to cling to relevance with all the desperation of Ramona Singer with her sights set on an eligible bachelor? It’s anyone’s guess, but my money is on the latter, and it makes it slightly difficult to sympathize with her crusade.
Another Real Housewife of New York whose story was featured heavily in the discourse on the reality reckoning is Leah McSweeney. Leah was featured on seasons 12 and 13 of RHONY, as well as season three of Real Housewives: Ultimate Girls Trip in Thailand.
Unlike Bethenny, Leah’s journey on reality TV was fraught with regrettable, embarrassing moments. She rocketed to eternal Housewife infamy when she got hammered in the Hamptons, shed her clothes, and threw tiki torches across Ramona Singer’s lawn. It made for great TV, but Leah, understandably, didn’t find it as amusing as the rest of us, and she’s setting blame on production and the network.
By her own admission, Leah, who had been previously sober for nine years, relapsed prior to filming the show. Nonetheless, she still believes production played a significant role in her subsequent mental breakdown.
After getting her sobriety back under control, Leah returned to the franchise on season 3 of RHUGT. This one really gets me, y’all. She got paid $250,000 for a week of work on a luxury vacation in Thailand.
Was it kind of a nightmare? Sure. Was it the worst season of Ultimate Girls Trip thus far? Yes. But you could lock me up in Gitmo for a week for $250,000 and I wouldn’t complain. No torture, though. I’d charge extra for waterboarding. I genuinely cannot believe the balls on this woman to complain about this.
Leah filed an ADA complaint saying that production and the network violated her rights in the filming of the show. Now, I very much believe that alcoholism is a disease and should be treated as such, but the producers claimed they made significant efforts to accommodate Leah. It seems the courts agreed, as her complaint was swiftly dismissed.
These are adult women making their own choices. No one forced them to be on reality TV. Leah and Bethenny both have successful businesses outside of the show. The money is good. Their complaints reek of personal grudges.
Now, that said, some of the people raising hell about their treatment on reality TV absolutely have a point. Back to RHONY, the focal point of all the mess. On season 13, producers decided it was probably smart to finally have a Black cast member on a show supposedly representing the diverse community of New York City. They cast Eboni Williams, whose treatment on and off camera was nothing short of appalling and likely led to the eventual rebooting of the show entirely.
Ramona Singer allegedly dropped the n-word, although this was not televised, and Singer repeatedly made tone-deaf and deeply racist remarks throughout the season. Two years after that mishandled trainwreck, Ramona was once again hired by Bravo to appear on season 4 of RHUGT: RHONY Legacy.
Williams has every right to be pissed off at Bravo and its production companies. While Bethenny and Leah come off as whining, Williams is a woman with an actual point against the industry.
Almost an afterthought of the whole reality reckoning conversation is the cast of Love is Blind— a Netflix dating show where participants get engaged sight unseen. It’s a show with a wild premise and meteoric success, and according to some of its stars, appalling working conditions.
The participants on Love is Blind are allegedly forced to work obscenely long days with no breaks and for very questionable compensation. The show has also been plagued by accusations of sexual assault between the show’s participants with production allegedly not doing much to stop it.
Now those are real problems, and the kind of problems this reality reckoning should be focused on. Instead the plights of Williams and the participants in Love is Blind are almost an afterthought, overshadowed by the star-powered Leah and Bethenny’s gripes.
Is the reality reckoning going to lead to significant change? Probably not on Bravo. RHONY has been entirely rebooted, hopefully partially addressing the rampant racism of the previous cast. Leah’s legal complaint has already been dismissed. No one seems to be taking Bethenny in her Yzma era seriously. It’s yet to be seen what the powers that be will do about Love is Blind. Maybe the upshot of all this nonsense is that future casts will get a significantly better deal.
Leave a Reply