It’s been more than a year-and-a half since a season of MTV’s The Real World aired, causing many fans to suspect that the plug had been pulled on the long-in-the-tooth reality show. However, a new report by Deadline states that Bunim-Murray, the production company behind the show, is considering bringing ‘The Real World’ back– after giving it a makeover!
According to Deadline, the production company “just hit the pause button on the venerable franchise” after its 32nd aired in 2016-2017, but they do have plans for the show’s future.
“They are looking to reboot/reinvent it the way MTV recently did with another of its signature docu-reality series Jersey Shore,” the site’s source claimed.
The rebooted version of the show may not air on MTV, though. Instead, it will be shopped around, targeting streaming platforms like Hulu and Netflix. (Queer Eye for the Straight Guy was recently revived in this way on Netflix.)
Bunim-Murray co-founder and ‘Real World’ co-creator Jonathan Murray told Deadline, “We’re talking,” when asked about the reboot.
The groundbreaking docu-reality series premiered in 1992 and continued airing until 2017. Fans watched as “seven strangers picked to live in a house, work together and have their lives taped.”
Happy 25th, #RealWorld! Let’s look back on a bunch of strangers who were picked to live in an epic house and have their lives taped ❤ pic.twitter.com/wLyBURD3fk
— MTV’s Real World (@RealWorldMTV) May 21, 2017
In recent years, however, the once-beloved reality show has seen its ratings steadily drop. The last few season have relied on gimmicks (such as bringing the roommates’ exes and enemies to the house with them), but even those hokey themes haven’t helped spike ratings.
The ratings of the most-recent seasons of ‘The Real World’ have been very low compared to the ratings of earlier seasons. For example, the season finale of “The Real World: Bad Blood” (which aired in January 2017) brought in 0.34 million viewers, whereas the season finale of “The Real World: San Diego,” which aired in 2011, brought in 1.39 million viewers. (Earlier seasons did even better in the ratings.)
One of the most famous Real Worlders, Johnny Bananas, told Urban Daddy in December that he agreed the show needed to do something to fix the show. He said the new seasons just aren’t watchable anymore.
“The past few seasons of ‘The Real World’ just look miserable,” he said. “These people are beating the s**t out of each other, they’re arguing with each other, nobody wants to hang out with anyone else in the house, nobody gets along.”
So what would Johnny Bananas do?
“I’d go back to the format that worked,” he said. “And that was a bunch of adolescents, early twenty-somethings, who had things in common; who were strong personalities, but not necessarily personalities that just did not mesh.”
Johnny said he thought the producers were now purposely putting people together that they knew would not get along.
“I can’t continue staying here and get looked at a certain way when it should be so clearly obvious that this is not who I am.” #RWBadBlood pic.twitter.com/ZAEKCwCP25
— MTV’s Real World (@RealWorldMTV) December 1, 2016
“They’re taking people from completely opposite ends of the world and putting them in a house,” he said. “What made ‘The Real World’ work back in the day was, you had attractive people in a house who wanted to party, wanted to hang out and wanted to hook up. There was drama, but the drama wasn’t like this crazy visceral hatred. There wasn’t this racism involved; there wasn’t all these other really toxic issues on the show. And while that’s something we obviously face in society, that doesn’t need to be the focal point of the show.”
Although ‘The Real World’ has seen its rating fall in recent years, its long-running spin-off The Challenge, continues to bring in decent ratings for MTV. Its most-recent season, “Vendettas” premiered in January 2018 with a respectable 0.89 million viewers.
The next season of ‘The Challenge,’ “The Final Reckoning” is set to premiere in July. (Click here for details on the new season!)
No reboot plan or premiere date for ‘The Real World’ had been confirmed by MTV or Bunim-Murray as of press times.
(Photos: MTV, Twitter)
13 Responses
I think they should move them into preplanned fun/nice house (like usual) to be filmed but expected to pay rent, bills, etc. They would be responsible for getting their own jobs or saving money beforehand. Maybe the rent wouldn’t necessarily be as high as the property value but it would be more like a real world situation.
very few would apply to be on the show if they had to pay their own bills! It’s a tired concept now! There is too much ‘stars in the eyes of candidates now. They know they can be rich and famous after being on. What are you going to attract if that’s the case? It needs to be put to bed, it will never be what it was in season 1 and 2, NEVER!
Wow Johnny “bananas” is VERY wrong in his critique of the show. The original format WAS to bring a group of diverse young working professionals into a house who all have different religions, political beliefs etc. The series in the 90s often started a dialogue on a variety of important social topics. It wasn’t about “attractive people partying together.” I really hope this reboot goes back to the original format and ditches the “bad girls club” partying type drama that the show has morphed into. I want more intelligent conversations!
I’m old, so I remember the first season of The Real World. This show in the 90s was amazing, and not just because it was the only reality t.v. It was because the roommates were all so different – all different ages, backgrounds, ethnicities, from different places, etc.
In the early 2000s and beyond, they were all the damn same – same age, same attitudes, same personalities, etc. And all they did was bicker and fight and party and repeat. In the 90s they learned about each other, they listened to each other, they were in a strange place together, they worked a strange job together, and they bonded (or not). It morphed into pure trash and it doesn’t even deserve to be called The Real World anymore.
One of my favorite thing about watching these shows as a teen was how they learned about the city and acclimated to the culture. I felt like I “explored” all of the US with them.
FARRAH GOT ARRESTED.
Bring back road rules instead!
Of course Johnny is the one to comment. His life depends on these kind of shows lol.
the show was great when it started out in the 90’s in New York was the first show, anyone remember that? Or even the San Francisco cast with Pedro Zamora who died of AIDS when the show was airing , that was my favorite season it had real people on the show. That’s why it was so good. The last ones were fake and staged full of fake people that said and did anything to get on the show, and use it as a gateway to fame money and celebrity, and everyone that watched the show of late knew that, that’s why people didn’t want to waste their time anymore with wanna bee actors and celebrities. You can watch a real scripted show with gifted actors if that’s what you’re interested in!
The problem is there is a ton a reality trash to watch now. When I was in middle school and high school, TRL (the original one) was still on, and Real World and Cops were your main reality shows. Lol Now, there’s dozens to choose from. And their primary age group is too glued to Snapchat and Instagram to sit and watch a show for an hour. Lol
If they don’t take it back to the early days where they had jobs and causes and personalities, it will go right back to drunken fighting and sex…..WHAT ABOUT ROAD RULES!?
Bring back Road Rules!!! That was always fun to watch!
Yes I loved Road Rules & the “Winnie”
For once I agree with Johnny… the last few seasons were toxic. At the core, the roommates have to want to hang out with each other.
Also, I miss the days where they actually had a job. Watching the group in Sydney host Contiki tours made me want to go on a Contiki tour – ten years later but still haha