RHOBH: Is production to blame for the monotonous past few seasons?

Evolution Media is the production company behind RHOBH, RHOC, and Vanderpump Rules. Is it time for Bravo to reevaluate?

The collective discussion between most die-hard Bravo lovers is that several Bravo shows have lost their luster in recent seasons. The Real Housewives of Orange County and Vanderpump Rules have suffered from this, but most notably, with The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. It might seem like the Housewives are to blame for this drop in compelling content, but should this blame be on the cast or with production?

Season ten of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills started with a bang. Production led audiences to believe rumors of a sexual nature between Denise Richards and former Beverly Hills housewife Brandi Glanville. But halfway through the season, it felt like a Denise Richards pile on by the other housewives, with no other compelling plotlines and heavy producer manipulation. The season felt stale, almost like we have seen this before.

This cast gang up on one housewife production style is not anything new on Beverly Hills. It was also heavily utilized in season nine of RHOBH. The cast ganged up against Lisa Vanderpump in the infamous “puppy gate” storyline, involving stories sold to tabloids involving Dorit Kemsley and the dog, Lucy Lucy Apple Juice, Kemsley obtained from Vanderpump’s dog rescue. Is it time to retire this production style?

The key to shifting the blame for these dull seasons from the cast members to production is when you watch the secrets revealed episodes that typically air after the reunion. Both Vanderpump Rules and The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills had content and plot points that were more compelling than what was shown on the season. It seems like production was dropping the ball, and viewers are starting to catch on. Housewives do not control what makes it to air and how their storylines are crafted together, but the production company does.

It seems like Bravo finally caught on that something isn’t working with these three shows. Bravo is taking their time to reevaluate Vanderpump Rules and The Real Housewives of Orange County. With The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills set to return with its eleventh season in the next few months, we will see if this continues to be the production style.

The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills is set to return to Bravo in the Late Spring/Early Summer.