Hulu's 'Vanderpump Villa' Marks a Turning Point in Trash Reality TV

By Emma Chance | TV | February 5, 2024 |

By Emma Chance | TV | February 5, 2024 |

It’s been less than a year since news broke of Scandoval, the cheating scandal involving Tom Sandoval, Rachel Leviss and Ariana Madix of Vanderpump Rules. Bravo and reality TV as we know it have been thoroughly rocked since then. There was the relaunch of Real Housewives of New York City with a younger, more diverse cast, the separation of Kyle Richards and Mauricio Umanksy, the engagement and then swift breakup of Lindsay Hubbard and Carl Radke, Shannon Beador’s DUI and its fallout, multiple allegations of sexual harassment and assault, and Real Housewives of Salt Lake City season 4 in its entirety. And now, just weeks after Bravo announced the Vanderpump Rules spinoff The Valley, starring some of the former show’s favorite rejects, Hulu, of all places, has announced their own spinoff: Vanderpump Villa.

The show follows the staff of Lisa Vanderpump’s “luxury” French villa, and based on the trailer, looks like Vanderpump Rules meets Love Island. It is humbly described thusly:

“Each scintillating episode follows the elite staff as they try to provide luxurious, once-in-a-lifetime, Vanderpump-curated experiences for guests while dealing with rivalries, romances, and raucous misadventures that come from living and working together 24/7. From firework-filled proposals and opulent events at the chateau to unbelievable excursions and outrageous confrontations in the French countryside, each day at the Cahteau brings nonstop heartfelt, humorous, and heated moments, from staff and guests alike. All the while, Lisa evaluates whether this is the team to make her “pop up” experience a permanent reality and add to her ever-growing empire.”

Both spinoffs mark a movement in the genre from the contemporary Housewives model—i.e. rich-people schadenfreude—to the more classic Real World model—i.e. alcoholic young people schadenfreude. It, along with the aforementioned cast changes and cast tragedies, says something about the Bravo viewership and fans of reality TV in general: it’s getting younger and a little more enlightened; racist elites like Ramona Singer and Bethenny Frankel won’t cut it anymore; we want trashy people we can relate to and maybe even root for, even if we kind of hate them.