Summary
The intermediateVanderpump Rulesproduction “pause” after season 11 was unequivocally impacted by the success of its new spin-off,The Valley.VPRresurged as a reality television phenomenon in March 2023 after it was revealed that Tom Sandoval had cheated on his partner of nearly ten years, Ariana Madix, with their co-star and friend Rachel Leviss. For years, the show had dealt with affairs among its cast members, butScandoval breached new grounds of press for its cast.Cameras picked up to film the wake of the scandal forVPRseason 11, which was received with mixed reviews.
Scandoval prompted the production ofThe Valley, a spin-off ofVPRthat features a cast of its former longtime stars Kristen Doute, Jax Taylor, and Brittany Cartwright. Despite some uncertainty,The Valleyseason 1was met with great reception. The series made use of the popularity and typical format of its predecessor with new and interesting personalities.When a new supreme rises, the old one fades away, and it may be time forVPRto end after season 11andThe Valleylikely contributed to its downfall.
20 Best Reality TV Shows Right Now
Reality TV is more popular than ever. With so many to choose from, here are some of the best reality TV shows to stream or watch right now.
The Valley Is A Fresh Extension Of Vanderpump Rules
New Drama, Faces, & Storylines Set The Valley Up For Success
It’s no secret that the pilot forThe Valleywouldn’t have begun production in 2023 if it wasn’t for the fallout of Scandoval. TheVPRteam idealized a spin-off that would follow its founding cast years before it premiered in 2024, but was shelved after Stassi Schroeder, Jax, andKristen were fired for racist remarks. In a clip of Stassi onThe Toastpodcast in 2022, she revealed thatThe Valleywas set to begin with her May 2022 weddingand showcase theVPRstars moving on to the next stage of their lives.
“The way that ‘Vanderpump Rules’ started where it was like ‘Real Housewives of Beverly Hills’ and it transitioned into ‘Vanderpump,’ that’s what we were gonna do with my wedding.”
It wasn’t a coincidence thatThe Valleybegan with a segment of Jax sitting down alongside Sandoval for the first time since his affair with Rachel. As Stassi detailed in her appearance on The Toast in 2022,The Valleywas meant to emulate the beginning ofVPRwhich transitioned out ofThe Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.
After being nominated for two Emmys and amassing record-breaking viewing numbers,The Valleyinitially felt like a quick way for the formerVPRcast members and production team to bank in on the aftermath of Scandoval.
However, the consensus on the spin-off swiftly changed.It was interesting to see how Kristen, Jax, and Brittany’s lives had changedsinceVPRseason 8. They ushered in a new slate of friends turned co-stars who were all at similar stages in their lives. Each couple was navigating the perils of adult and parenthood in their own ways. The cast ofThe Valleywere all friends in real life, which made the show and the drama among its cast feel organic. The only awkward sense aboutThe Valleywas that Bravo essentially reversed the firings of Kristen and Jax.
Vanderpump Rules Was Overshadowed By Tom Sandoval’s Redemption Storyline
The Valley Was Rid Of All Scandoval-Related Drama
WhileThe Valleyintroduced fresh drama and faces to Bravo,VPRwas busy rehashing stale narratives. There was no way the network wasn’t going to pick up cameras to film the fallout of Scandoval on the show in the summer of 2023. However, looking back onVPRseason 11 feels like a time capsule. Ariana has said she won’t even watch the season because she was in a tough spot asthe news of the affair had only broken three months before their filming schedule forVPRseason 11.
VPRproduction attempted to force moments throughout season 11. They tried to give Scandoval a redemption storyline that some cast members were unwilling to fall in line with. WhileLala Kent and Scheana Shay were ready to play ball with the producers, Ariana and Katie did not budge in their stances. Lala and Scheana reaped the benefits of the scandal in the months after by incessantly talking about it on their podcasts. They essentially strippedVPRseason 11 of all shock value because they had discussed every moment on their podcasts beforehand.
They were far more vocal than Ariana about how distraught they were by Sandoval’s actions. So, when their stances on the situation did a full 180 onVPRseason 11, it felt unauthentic. It seemed as if Lala and Scheana were pressured by production to feed into the Sandoval redemption arc. None of the drama inThe Valleyfelt manufactured or set up.VPRandThe Valleyare supposed to be reality shows, and it felt likethe cast of the latter was more focused on creating conflicting TV momentsrather than filming natural updates on the situation.
Now, Vanderpump Rules Stars Have The Option To Go On The Valley If Their Show Gets Canceled
If Vanderpump Is Done, Its Cast Has The Option To Continue Their Reality TV Careers On The Valley
IfVPRis officially canceled, its former stars have the option to hop over toThe Valleyto continue their careers as reality TV stars.The Valleywas renewed for season 2 whileVPRhas been put on a production “pause,”originally reported byTMZ. At this point, it doesn’t matter what happens to Lisa Vanderpump’s reality show, because the cast knows it can switch over toThe Valley.
It’s assumed that none of the cast is fully ready to walk away from VPR.
They’d all likely be devastated if it was canceled. At theVPRseason 11 reunion, Lala noted that she “loved” filming the show because it was a large part of her livelihood and one of her main sources of income to support her family. She’s one cast member that has been accused of creating manufactured moments. Lala viewsVPRas a job, which it is. However,she’s become so focused on producing herselfthat her intentions have gotten muddled.
It seems Lala’s performance inVPRseason 11 impressed the production.Page Sixreported she was in “early talks to join ‘The Valley’” and stay onVPRwhen season 12 began filming. She prepared herself for her potential introduction to the spin-off at theVPRseason 11 reunion while revealing a conflict she’d had with Brittany. It came out of left field for Lala to randomly reveal she had minor drama withThe Valleystar Brittany, but thenews of her potential casting on the show made the moment make sense.
The Valley Will Suffer If It Turns Into Vanderpump Rules 2.0
The New Show Doesn’t Need The Drama Of Vanderpump To Succeed
The Valleywill lose its spark if it turns intoVanderpump Rules2.0.The Valleyhas been positively received because it felt like a separate extension toVPR.Instead of continuously rehashing the same storylines over and over again,The Valleyfelt completely fresh and rid itself of its roots after its first episode.It was smart to cast only a few of the show’s former stars while introducing many new faces. If Lala, Scheana, Sandoval, Schwartz, Katie, and Ariana joinedThe Valleyseason 1, it would have felt like another season ofVPR.
While it was incredibly controversial to rehire Kristen and Jax, their inclusion in the season felt natural. They pioneeredVPRand helped contribute to its success as a show over the years. While they’ve gotten older and grown up a little bit,Kristen and Jax still possess personalities that thrive on reality TV.You know what they say, a leopard can’t change its spots, and they surely didn’t forThe Valley. The spin-off didn’t feel overcrowded by ex-SUR employees and thrived by ushering in a completely new cast that felt connected by real bonds of friendship.
The success ofThe Valleyhas undoubtedly contributed to theVPR“pause” in production. Viewers are tired of rehashing the drama of Scandoval and have taken a liking to the revamped vibe of the new spin-off. IfVPRgot canceled, its former cast would taint the success ofThe Valleyand ruin the franchise for good.
Vanderpump Rules
Cast
Vanderpump Rules is a reality-drama series created for Bravo that stars Lisa Vanderpump, a former star of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, as she expands her restaurant empire and staff. The cast consists of Lisa’s staff members across her various establishments in West Hollywood as they try to build their futures and establish relationships that range from friendly to romantic. All of which frequently turn messy as mixing with business pleasure, as they are warned, doesn’t always end well.
