‘Shiny Happy People’ Season 2: Fans Theorize the Upcoming Season Will Focus on 2 Other Reality TV Families
Amazon‘s most successful docuseries to date, Shiny Happy People, won’t be a one-hit wonder. A second season of the series appears to be coming to the streaming platform.
While the streaming service provider and the production team are staying quiet about the specifics, filming for season 2 of Shiny Happy People is underway. Fans think the series, focused on the IBLP and the famous families involved in the controversial ministry, will shine a spotlight on someone other than the Duggars this time around. In fact, two different reality TV families could be the focus of the upcoming season.
Fans theorize about ‘Shiny Happy People’ Season 2 as filming starts
Cori Shepherd Stern, executive producer of Shiny Happy People, appeared on Reddit last year for an AMA. While Shepherd Stern admitted that there was plenty of footage left over from season 1, she never said the second season of the docuseries would focus entirely on the Duggars. Now that filming for season 2 is underway in Georgia, fans have theories about what famous families could appear in the upcoming season. Fans think it will focus on the Bates family or the Plaths.
Fans took to Reddit to discuss the hypothetical season, and most agreed that season 2 will likely focus on the Plaths or the Bates. Fans noted that Shepherd Stern said she would like to delve into the Bates family in additional seasons, if possible, in her AMA. While Shepherd Stern didn’t mention the Plaths publicly, fans note that the filming location could mean the family is being looked at. The production team is filming in Georgia, and the Plaths are based in the Peach State.
Who is the Bates family?
TV viewers first met the Bates family when they appeared on the Duggar family’s reality TV series. Following their appearance on 19 Kids and Counting, they landed a show of their own. They eventually moved to WeTV, where their series, Bringing Up Bates, was a massive ratings success. The series was canceled in January 2022 under suspicious circumstances.
Based in Tennessee, the family consists of Gil and Kelly Jo Bates and their 19 children. The Bates, like the Duggars, are deeply engrained in the IBLP, with Gil serving on the board of directors. While the family lost their TV series, several of Gil and Kelly Jo’s children are active on social media.
Who are the Plaths?
The Plath family is a fundamentalist Christian family who rose to fame in 2019. They star in Welcome to Plathville, a reality TV series about their family on TLC. Like the Duggars and the Bates, the Plaths were first presented as ultra-conservative Christians who homeschool their children and abide by modesty rules, for the most part.
The family is led by Kim and Barry Plath. They share 10 children, one of whom died in 2008. Despite their religious beliefs, Kim and Barry opted to divorce in 2023. They had been married for nearly 25 years. Despite the end of their marriage and other major scandals, the family is moving forward with their reality TV series.
The Plaths have been associated with the No Greater Joy Ministries more recently, but they are also connected to the IBLP. Their reality TV show is far different from the shows in which the Bates and Duggar families appeared. 19 Kids and Counting and Bringing Up Bates presented wholesome, united families to viewers. Welcome to Plathville highlighted significant strife within the supersized family from the very start. That is likely to continue.
