RW in the Media: Somehow the Show is Almost Relevant

[snarts]

The OG cast of MTV’s landmark reality show The Real World have reunited for a new edition of the series, and you won’t have to wait very long to watch it. The Real World Homecoming: New York, featuring all seven participants from the first season of the show, will debut March 4 as part of the day-one lineup for the soon-to-launch Paramount+. While specifics regarding the format and length are scant, RW Homecoming will consist of multiple episodes and was shot on location at the same Soho loft where those now-infamous seven Gen-X strangers first met 29 years ago next week.  Premieres March 4th  https://www.vulture.com/2021/02/real-world-homecoming-season-1-reunion-paramount.html

Also...

Andy Cohen Reunites OG Real World Cast In 'For Real: The Story of Reality TV' Trailer  which premieres March 25th https://toofab.com/2021/02/12/andy-cohen-real-world-e-series/

 

[Hiyo]

The article does say they spent several days filming, so it sounds like it could be a nice reunion. Hopefully no manufactured drama...

[Giuseppe]

I was coming here to post a similar article. I'm stupid excited about this. I can't believe they actually got them to reunite in the original loft.

[snarts]

Trishelle lobbying for a Vegas reunion

[Lantern7]

1 hour ago, snarts said:

Trishelle lobbying for a Vegas reunion

YOU ALREADY HAD ONE! DAMN!!!

How many RW seasons are on Paramount?

[snarts]

12 minutes ago, Lantern7 said:

YOU ALREADY HAD ONE! DAMN!!!

How many RW seasons are on Paramount?

Paramount has 1-4, 12, 15-18, 20-21, 23-24, 26-32

All the ones I want to watch are missing. Unfortunately,  I think they sold the rights to 5-11. The other missing seasons are a bit more perplexing. 

I wish they had Road Rules. 

Edited March 28, 2021 by snarts

[moonchild81]

who could they have sold the rights to for the 5-11 seasons? i wish those seasons would air again, road rules too especially the earliest ones 1-5

Edited March 29, 2021 by moonchild81

[ljenkins782]

On 3/27/2021 at 8:01 PM, snarts said:

Paramount has 1-4, 12, 15-18, 20-21, 23-24, 26-32

All the ones I want to watch are missing. Unfortunately,  I think they sold the rights to 5-11. The other missing seasons are a bit more perplexing. 

I wish they had Road Rules. 

I thought they sold the rights to 1-4. I remember there being a RW marathon back in the day with commercials saying "this is the last time you'll see these seasons on MTV." And then you could randomly run across RW on other channels after that, I guess it was CBS-owned stations.

And yeah, the absence of the seasons between 12 and 15 is very strange. I watched to watch San Diego and Sydney again.

I would love to know the details of who owns what because there is so much extra content, like the casting specials, the all-cast reunions, etc. Plus all the challenges beyond the ones that are currently available online, which sadly include way too few of the good years.

[snarts]

When shows are sold into syndication, it's sometimes only select seasons and it's always for a period of time.  Sometimes the rights are sold exclusively, but most often they're limited.  For example, Modern Family reruns are shown on multiple channels but E! seems to have only the most recent seasons while USA Network has all seasons. 

I remember years ago when The Real World seasons 1-4 would air late at night on my local WB TV station.  That deal obviously ended but I wonder if the rights to seasons 5-11 are currently exclusively held by some entity which is why they aren't available on Paramount?

 

[Teriyaki Terror]

3 hours ago, snarts said:

When shows are sold into syndication, it's sometimes only select seasons and it's always for a period of time.  Sometimes the rights are sold exclusively, but most often they're limited.  For example, Modern Family reruns are shown on multiple channels but E! seems to have only the most recent seasons while USA Network has all seasons. 

I remember years ago when The Real World seasons 1-4 would air late at night on my local WB TV station.  That deal obviously ended but I wonder if the rights to seasons 5-11 are currently exclusively held by some entity which is why they aren't available on Paramount?

 

I want to see season 10!!!!

[ljenkins782]

3 hours ago, Teriyaki Terror said:

I want to see season 10!!!!

I want to see the season 10 casting special. It was 1000 times more interesting than the Real World and Road Rules shows that it was filling.

I will never understand why a franchise that thrives on conflict would back away from the goldmine of drama that was Coral vs Ellen. Instead, they decided to follow the potential romance angle with big pile of bland that was Kevin and Lori's inexplicable obsession with him. Such a great casting special and then the huge letdown of B2NY and RR The Quest.

[Teriyaki Terror]

16 hours ago, ljenkins782 said:

I want to see the season 10 casting special. It was 1000 times more interesting than the Real World and Road Rules shows that it was filling.

I will never understand why a franchise that thrives on conflict would back away from the goldmine of drama that was Coral vs Ellen. Instead, they decided to follow the potential romance angle with big pile of bland that was Kevin and Lori's inexplicable obsession with him. Such a great casting special and then the huge letdown of B2NY and RR The Quest.

That casting special was awesome! I was surprised when they didn't cast Ellen and Coral on the same show. I always liked Ellen. She did do things to get attention and it always backfired but I believe deep down she was just trying to fit in. It was sad she only did one challenge and she's not active on social media.  I can't blame her for wanting to live a quiet life. Coral should have a podcast! 

[aghst]

Sean Duffy resigned from Congress after 4 terms talking about spending more time with family.

He joined a Republican Party lobbying firm and appears on Fox a news.

Rachel Campos Duffy has also appeared on Fox News.  Recently she remarked how much better Kim Jong Un looks better than Joe Biden.

Biden is like 40 years older.  But she’s getting that TV money for insightful commentary.

 

🙄

[Hiyo]

I mean, given the gorgeous stud she is married to, I guess she is competent enough to judge other people on looks?

[aghst]

It sort of suggests that Fox isn't taking her seriously as a political commentator if she's remarking about the looks of political leaders as opposed to more substantive things which could be said about them.

[Lantern7]

Rachel is the second reason why there shouldn’t be a RW3 “reunion season.”

You probably know the biggest reason.

Oh, and have you seen promos for NBC’s Frogger-based game show? Kyle is co-hosting. Way to go, fivehead!

 

[funnygirl]

Real World: Back to New York's Mike "The Miz" Mizanin is going to be on Dancing With the Stars this fall. 

[Marisagf]

Just saw this in one of the TV industry newsletters I get:

“The Real World Homecoming” scored orders for second and third seasons from Paramount+ and MTV. “The Real World: Homecoming New York” premiered on Paramount+ in March, convening members of the original cast from 1992; LA alums will be the next to gather.

 

So I guess San Francisco  will be next.

 

[Bastet]

7 hours ago, Marisagf said:

So I guess San Francisco  will be next.

I enjoyed that season, but unless Puck and Rachel aren't part of it, I don't care to see the reunion.  He shouldn't even be invited, given his abusive behavior turned criminal in the years since; no one who went to prison for stalking and continued to get arrested for domestic violence after he got out should be brought into a living situation.  And she's long since become so utterly insufferable that, while she of course should be invited to participate, I don't want to watch it if she does.

(I don't get Paramount+, so I can only watch the first episode anyway, since that gets put up on YouTube as an enticement.  But I don't think I could handle even that much of her.  Maybe if there's some great shade thrown her way.)

[Glade]

According to Amaya, S3 was nearly locked in place for the Hawaii cast but then several people backed out at the last minute a few weeks ago and thus it's up in the air which season will be revisited.   I want to see SF: but it would be difficult to get them all in the house together (even leaving Puck out.) 

[Sister Havana]

I would love to see the Miami cast do S3. Seattle would also be a good pick. 

[Bastet]

It's entirely possible MTV won't pull off a single Homecoming season with the whole cast.

- NY was supposed to have everyone, but Eric could only call in occasionally because he got COVID, and then Becky left early.

- LA won't have Aaron or Dominic, and, knowing that group, it won't be a shock if someone pulls a Becky and stomps off.

- SF couldn't have Pedro, shouldn't have Puck, and I can't decide whether Rachel would think she's too "big" to revisit it or if she'd be thirsty for another camera to spew her nasty worldview through.  I read something about Jo flipping out and leaving a RW/RR Challenge, so maybe she wants nothing to do with Jon Murray.  Mohammed was barely around the first time.

Et cetera, et cetera; I can't think of a cast other than the first where it seems to me like all of them would be willing to do it.

[UniqBlue69]

Season 3 of Homecoming will reportedly be New Orleans and everyone is participating.

This better be true! My first Real World season ever!

[Lantern7]

3 hours ago, UniqBlue69 said:

Season 3 of Homecoming will reportedly be New Orleans and everyone is participating.

This better be true! My first Real World season ever!

I was afraid of this. I mean, I felt that this was one of the better seasons, but I'm forced to wonder if Julie and/or Matt have drifted further towards uncomfortable stances in various areas. And natch, I'm gonna worry about Melissa. I'm concerned she might be edited to be a bitch or crazy . . .  or both.

Man, I feel old as fuck now.

[shantown]

13 hours ago, UniqBlue69 said:

Season 3 of Homecoming will reportedly be New Orleans and everyone is participating.

This better be true! My first Real World season ever!

I'm bummed they're seemingly skipping so many seasons in between. I can get why they'd skip SF and London, but I would have loved to see anything from the Miami-Boston-Seattle run. I wonder if NOLA was the next earliest cast they could get everyone to agree to participate. 

[Bastet]

3 hours ago, shantown said:

I'm bummed they're seemingly skipping so many seasons in between. I can get why they'd skip SF and London, but I would have loved to see anything from the Miami-Boston-Seattle run. I wonder if NOLA was the next earliest cast they could get everyone to agree to participate. 

Same here - I'd think they'd want to go in order (quickly from one to the next, but in order), so I wonder if they decided - based on popularity in terms of both ratings at the time and ongoing/current feedback - to jump so far ahead or if after L.A. (with two refusals, specifically two of the original seven out of the eventual nine) they kept running into too many holdouts and New Orleans was the next season they could get everyone (or at least almost everyone) to sign.  I tend to think it's the latter, but who knows.

[Teriyaki Terror]

2 minutes ago, Bastet said:

Same here - I'd think they'd want to go in order (quickly from one to the next, but in order), so I wonder if they decided - based on popularity in terms of both ratings at the time and ongoing/current feedback - to jump so far ahead or if after L.A. (with two refusals, specifically two of the original seven out of the eventual nine) they kept running into too many holdouts and New Orleans was the next season they could get everyone (or at least almost everyone) to sign.  I tend to think it's the latter, but who knows.

What channel do these reboot air on?

[Lantern7]

8 minutes ago, Teriyaki Terror said:

What channel do these reboot air on?

It will stream on Paramount+.

[snarts]

Damn, I hoped they'd go in order. 

Even if they can't get everyone, I would love to see reunions for all the seasons before Las Vegas.  

I realize that most dislike London, but I loved it, and the cast, so it would be fantastic to hear how they're all doing.  

[moonchild81]

3 minutes ago, snarts said:

Damn, I hoped they'd go in order. 

Even if they can't get everyone, I would love to see reunions for all the seasons before Las Vegas.  

I realize that most dislike London, but I loved it, and the cast, so it would be fantastic to hear how they're all doing.  

i follow kat , jacinda(doesn't post that much and she is close with meghan and harry, she went to their wedding with her husband) , sharon and mike on instagram / lars even went to visit norman in michigan a few weeks ago / norman posted about it

[Hiyo]

I liked London too.

I do think given how much more spread out that cast is compared to some of the others, it might be harder to organize a reunion (especially with changing Covid visit rules between the US, UK, and Europe).

 

[ljenkins782]

On 10/31/2021 at 11:44 AM, shantown said:

I'm bummed they're seemingly skipping so many seasons in between. I can get why they'd skip SF and London, but I would have loved to see anything from the Miami-Boston-Seattle run. I wonder if NOLA was the next earliest cast they could get everyone to agree to participate. 

Let's just count our blessings that they didn't skip straight to Las Vegas! 

NOLA should be interesting given the feud between Melissa and Julie. I know it's been years, but if it was never dealt with, it could get weird.

Quote

- SF couldn't have Pedro, shouldn't have Puck, and I can't decide whether Rachel would think she's too "big" to revisit it or if she'd be thirsty for another camera to spew her nasty worldview through.  I read something about Jo flipping out and leaving a RW/RR Challenge, so maybe she wants nothing to do with Jon Murray.  Mohammed was barely around the first time.

I just rewatched this particular Challenge episode recently and Jo got a bit of the Seattle Irene treatment in the editing room, IMO. Watching it from the lens of "this is an adult thrown into an insane environment," I actually think Jo just reacted to the batshit craziness around her and things got out of hand. 

Also, a lot of the confessionals used to support the "Jo is nuts" narrative actually don't support it, there's a lot of creative editing. One of the people trying to "calm" the situation is a clearly drunk Ruthie, who goes off the rails pretty quickly.

All of that to say, I can see Jo turning down any more RW opportunities after receiving that kind of treatment. On the other hand, she got along well with her cast and they're all in their late 40s/50s by now so it wouldn't be the crazy party atmosphere of a challenge. I'd be interested to see someone like Cory, who was SO young and so lost, and see how she turned out. It'll make me feel old as hell, but I'd watch it. 

[Bastet]

Interview with Tami about changing her mind and deciding to do the "Homecoming" season.

[ljenkins782]

20 hours ago, Bastet said:

Interview with Tami about changing her mind and deciding to do the "Homecoming" season.

LOL at the photo in that article. Interesting read though.

Quote

The cast that season was notable for its discordant array of strong-willed personalities, including Jon Brennan, a conservative Christian country singer from Kentucky, and Dominic Griffin, a spiky-haired Irish writer who drove cross-country in an RV with Roman. (“One of the things we learned from L.A. was that we had to make sure that the roommates had enough things in common to hold them together,” Murray says.)

This came across loud and clear on the TV. Not only did they not have things in common, they were not the type of people who looked to relate to others. The combination made for uncomfortable living and uncomfortable viewing.

Quote

Roman says the experience was productive — to a point. “I really learned that no matter where you are in life, you have to meet people where they are, and not everybody is upwardly mobile. Some people are still exactly where you left them.” 

This quote makes me think there's more uncomfortable viewing ahead with this reunion. Wonder if this is referring to Jon Brennan or Glenn or both. 

[Glade]

 

Interesting recent interview with Judd.  At about 23:20 he's asked about Homecoming and says that he and Pam haven't been contacted by the production about doing San Francisco, and says that maybe they'd be willing if it was a short period of time rather then 3 weeks like LA, but it would be hard to arrange childcare and he worries 'some people' would turn it into a shitshow anyway.  

[LemonSoda]

On 3/30/2021 at 10:29 AM, ljenkins782 said:

I thought they sold the rights to 1-4. I remember there being a RW marathon back in the day with commercials saying "this is the last time you'll see these seasons on MTV." And then you could randomly run across RW on other channels after that, I guess it was CBS-owned stations.

And yeah, the absence of the seasons between 12 and 15 is very strange. I watched to watch San Diego and Sydney again.

I would love to know the details of who owns what because there is so much extra content, like the casting specials, the all-cast reunions, etc. Plus all the challenges beyond the ones that are currently available online, which sadly include way too few of the good years.

Me too! It’s embarrassing to admit but umm it seemed like the end of the world because back then when a show disappeared, it disappeared. So i got together with a friend and we took turns recording every season during the marathon, carefully pausing during commercial  break to eliminate commercials. She had the fancy double decker vhs machine so we made copies of all four seasons because they were GONE forever! Never to be aired again! 

I remember when they showed up in syndication I couldn’t believe how choppy the editing was. 
 

 

[Gharlane]

Last night, The Dark Side of the 90's covered The Real World. Well, the first three seasons, anyway. 

Quote

"MTV & The Real World". MTV's "The Real World" is television with something to say, with a soap opera twist. But when MTV gets rich from reality TV, they trade in realness for F. jokes and hot tubs.

It was interesting, but sad to see how quickly the show degenerated.

Edited June 22, 2022 by Gharlane

[kirklandia]

If anyone wants to know what Julie has been up to, check this out.

Edited July 9, 2022 by kirklandia

[Black Knight]

I bet the synopsis referring to her as a "former" reality TV star annoys her.

[aghst]

Oh I might have to actually watch that episode.

[Bastet]

Speculation there will be no more Homecoming:

Quote

The great streaming purge continues.

Ahead of a planned merger with Showtime, Paramount+ has removed nine original series from its platform, including The Real World: Homecoming, comedies Guilty Party (starring Kate Beckinsale), No Activity (starring Patrick Brammall and Tim Meadows) and Players, and the live-action children’s show The Fairly OddParents: Fairly Odder — none of which have been formally cancelled as of press time.

In addition, Paramount+ has scrubbed previously axed series Coyote (starring Michael Chiklis), The Harper House, Interrogation (starring Peter Sarsgaard) and The Twilight Zone (2019).

TVLine has reached out to Paramount+ for comment.

 

Edited February 2, 2023 by Bastet

[Lantern7]

Shit. I thought there hold be more time to hem and haw on seeing the NOLA Homecoming season. There were more reasons for me to avoid it than to bask in Melissa 2K22.

Well, at least there won’t be an Austin season. Who would look forward to Wes trying to put on airs and Danny being . . .  well . . . Danny?

[Lantern7]

I'm on YouTube, I see a video of the ManningCast covering the Bills' devastating loss . . . and I see an old fiveheaded friend of ours.

Here's the video. I can't embed it here.

ETA: There is no chance P+ would bring back the Homecoming seasons, right? I see the 800+ posts for New Orleans, and I start to think maybe I made a mistake in skipping it.

 

Edited November 14, 2023 by Lantern7

[aghst]

Speaking of RW, John Oliver featured a "And Now This" session showing a montage of Rachel Campos Duffy repeatedly referring to the fact that her husband Sean used to be in congress.

It was funny, there were like a dozen short clips of her saying the words, almost the same ones, over and over, in different contexts.

Like it was her claim to fame, wife of former congressman.

She probably didn't bring up being on Real World nearly as frequently when she's doing her Fox News gig though.

[heatherchandler]

13 minutes ago, Lantern7 said:

I'm on YouTube, I see a video of the ManningCast covering the Bills' devastating loss . . . and I see an old fiveheaded friend of ours.

Here's the video. I can't embed it here.

ETA: There is no chance P+ would bring back the Homecoming seasons, right? I see the 800+ posts for New Orleans, and I start to think maybe I made a mistake in skipping it.

 

Who is it?

[Lantern7]

1 minute ago, heatherchandler said:

Who is it?

Kyle Brandt, from RW11.

[heatherchandler]

8 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

Kyle Brandt, from RW11.

I should have known from “five head!”

[txhorns79]

Sarah from the Real World: Miami has passed away.  She was 52. 

[pdean82]

19 hours ago, txhorns79 said:

Sarah from the Real World: Miami has passed away.  She was 52. 

I was coming in here to see if anyone had posted about this. I saw it last night on TMZ. That was one of my favorite seasons.  That makes me so sad. For some odd reason, I was thinking about her the other day. I remember being so impressed by how confident she seemed at her age. Just so unapologetically herself. Age and time have a way of beating us down. 😥

[Yogisbooboo64]

Man, this is so sad.

Sarah always reminded me of Janis Joplin in the face….I always thought Janis was so pretty!

Anyway, she seemed kind, with a laid-back demeanor and was such the tomboy.  Next to Melissa and Joe, I always wondered what happened to her. 

As someone who took care of a terminally ill loved one and is still trying to process their passing, I feel for her having to be caregiver to her mother and sister, and then dealing with the skateboarding accident.

Rest in power, lovely.