It is a good time to be a Bravo fan.
This week, the reality television network best known for its “Real Housewives” franchise ordered a slate of new shows that seem to have something for everyone. There are new spinoffs featuring familiar stars, reboots of old series and even a crossover phenomenon.
Here’s what is known so far about the four new shows.
‘The Real Housewives of Rhode Island’
Fans have long speculated that the network would announce a new location for “Real Housewives,” its flagship franchise of series that document the personal and professional lives of a group of women in a specific city or region. Many seemed to think Chicago would be considered, but the network surprised everyone this week by announcing “The Real Housewives of Rhode Island” as the 11th location in the franchise.
Bravo described the women who would be featured on the show as: “A tight-knit circle of Rhode Islanders who have deep community roots and families that go back generations. With aspirational lives, thriving businesses and tangled family dynamics, these decade-long friendships prove that in a state this small, there’s no escaping your past … or each other.”
The cast and premiere date have yet to be officially revealed, but fans are already speculating on social media, with unverified lists of potential women.
‘Ladies of London’
After eight years off the air, Bravo announced that “Ladies of London” — imagine a “Real Housewives” show but with British royalty, international socialites and American expats — was returning to the network. “As tradition clashes with the fast-paced globalized world, these power players redefine what it means to be a woman of status in one of the most iconic cities in the world,” the news release said.
Bravo has not revealed who will be included in the cast, but it’s unlikely to feature the original show’s socialite star, Caroline Stanbury, as she’s left Britain for the United Arab Emirates as a member of “The Real Housewives of Dubai.”
‘The Valley: Persian Style’
Who knew the San Fernando Valley was such a hotbed for interpersonal drama? After the success of the “Vanderpump Rules” spinoff show “The Valley,” which follows the lives of married Bravolebrities living in the suburbs of Los Angeles, there’s now “The Valley: Persian Style.” The new offering is basically two spinoff shows combined: “The Valley” and “Shahs of Sunset,” a show that aired from 2012 to 2021 and followed the lives of Persian influencers in Los Angeles. “The Valley: Persian Style” will feature the former “Shahs of Sunset” stars Reza Farahan, Golnesa Gharachedaghi (who goes by GG) and Mercedes Javid (who goes by MJ).
The cast members “share a deep connection to their Persian culture, something that runs just as strong in the group of friends they now call family,” the new release for the show said. “As they take on the next stage of life in the Valley, their world is bigger, their circle is bolder and their challenges are more real than ever.”
“Love you all and so happy to be back and REPRESENTING,” Ms. Gharachedaghi wrote on Instagram after the announcement, while Mr. Farahan posted “Coming home to Bravo feels so good!”
‘Wife Swap: The Real Housewives Edition’
The last new series Bravo announced is also a combination of two franchises: Bravo’s “Real Housewives,” and “Wife Swap,” an ABC reality show that aired from 2004 to 2010 in which two wives leading very different lives swapped children, husbands and homes. In this new iteration, Real Housewives will trade lives with real housewives, which Bravo’s release said would lead to “laugh-out-loud moments, personal epiphanies and an opportunity to see if the grass is truly greener.”
Bravo has been scant on details — including which Housewives will participate and when the show will premiere — but fans are already building their dream casts.
Source: nytimes.com
