‘The Real World: Homecoming’: Danny Roberts Calls out Paramount+ for Cutting His HIV Dialogue
Reality TV star Danny Roberts returned for The Real World: Homecoming Season 3 alongside his former roommates, where he opened up about his journey following the original season. Apparently, Roberts also discussed his HIV diagnosis, but it wasn’t included in the final cut. Roberts has since called out Paramount+ for the omission, and production company Bunim/Murray has responded.
Danny Roberts called out Paramount+ for cutting his storyline about his HIV diagnosis
During Danny Roberts’ time on The Real World: Homecoming, much of his storyline revolved around his experience unintentionally becoming the face of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy due to his televised relationship with an officer in the military named Paul Dill.
The show organized an on-screen reunion at the house where the former couple reunited, and viewers could see his face. Real World infamously blurred his face in 2000 when Dill visited Roberts at the mansion to protect his identity due to his status in the military.
The reality star is HIV+ and apparently discussed his journey with his roommates. However, it wasn’t included in the final cut.
Speaking to the LA Times in a July 2022 interview, he admitted he considered the omission of the dialogue surrounding his diagnosis a “huge missed opportunity.”
Bunim/Murray responded to Roberts’ claims in a statement
He explained that he planned to talk about the “nightmare” side of the American healthcare system and the “amazing flip side” of modern medication and how it can prevent and treat HIV.
The production company behind The Real World, Bunim/Murray Productions, responded to Roberts’ claims with a statement to the LA Times.
It acknowledged his discussion around his HIV status and other “mental health challenges he struggled with” and how he has managed them. “The ‘Homecoming’ series ultimately focused on Roberts’ mental health journey, which he shared publicly with all his former roommates for the first time,” the statement concluded.
However, the reality star claimed a producer personally told him that the show left out the diagnosis discussion to prevent potential legal action due to outing his former partner.
Much of Roberts’ storyline in ‘Homecoming’ revolved around his relationship with ex-boyfriend Paul Dill
Roberts returned to New Orleans along with the rest of his roommates for the third season of Homecoming. The reunion became tense when Julie Stoffer arrived as Melissa Beck and Roberts accused her of writing defamatory letters about them after their original season, which hurt affected speaking engagements they had.
Although Stoffer didn’t take accountability for the situation, she offered a tearful apology to Roberts, which he admitted would take time for him to receive.
The reality star later opened up about his complex emotions surrounding becoming the face of the Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell policy at the time and how it affected his relationship with Dill. He also admitted that the public pressure of the relationship might have caused him to stay with his ex longer than he wanted.
Additionally, Roberts confronted roommate Matt Smith over previous words he said to him about his identity as a gay man, revealing it hurt his feelings. The two ended up bonding at a park and seemed to have developed a better relationship than in their original season. In the end, when asked if they would do the experience again, Roberts hesitated before claiming he would. The Real World: Homecoming is available to stream on Paramount+.
