‘Real Housewives’: Are the Storylines Scripted?’
The Real Housewives franchise has been bringing drama to our television screens for years. Were there even television fights before the rich women of Orange County showed us a whole new way to be catty?
Each version of the show has had some monumental moments. Every time that we think that the series can’t get more outrageous, some housewife finds a way to top it all. But how much of this drama is actually real?
Are the ‘Real Housewives’ storylines scripted?
It seems like people have been asking this question for years. A reality television producer held an Ask Me Anything to shed some light on the Real Housewives.
“Each housewife is assigned to their own story producer, whose only job is to develop her storyline,” the person wrote. “So they conspire to create plot points, image, etc… Each story producer’s housewife is their responsibility.”
In driving the storyline, the producer also has to make sure that the housewife stays on the show to finish the story.
“If the housewife has a breakdown at 2 am and wants to quit the show, or is pissed about her edit, she calls her story producer,” the person continued. “The story producer has to pretend to be their bestie and gain their trust, but they are also in charge of creating exciting TV, and will influence their housewife to walk into
To ensure that the show remains interesting, producers will add drama where they can. And that’s true for severa reality shows, not just Real Housewives.
“Most of the drama is manufactured,” the producer wrote. “I’ve been in the offices of story producers from one show about a luxury yacht (hint hint), and their walls are covered in sticky notes from ceiling to floor with possible plot points and
Are the meetings on ‘The Real Housewives’ planned?
A lot of the drama on the show centers around invitations and timing. Women will often get angry about not being invited somewhere or having to wait for someone.
According to this producer, a lot of that is planned.
“Everything is LOOSELY planned in advance,” they wrote. “So to shoot anywhere that is not their privately owned home, you have to get permission from the owner and get a film permit DAYS/WEEKS in advance.”
Which means that those parties where a housewife “forgot” to send another an invitation? Probably not so innocent.
Do producers start rumors?
A lot of times, producers will catch on to things before the women on the show. In those cases, they may have to hint to what’s going on.
One time where this may have happened was when Brooks Ayers allegedly faked cancer on The Real Housewives of Orange County.
“I think what happened was producers got fed up of being lied to by Brooks and not being able to successfully film any real scenes pertaining to his storyline, and they probably started hinting to the other ladies that something was up.”
Read more: RHOA: Which Housewife has the Highest Net Worth?
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