Is MTV’s ‘The Real World’ Still Filming? Was it Canceled?
MTV’s The Real World has become a cult classic in reality TV. And some cast members from the show have moved on to other shows, like MTV’s The Challenge. So, is The Real World still filming today, or was it canceled for good? Here’s what we know.
When did MTV’s ‘The Real World’ start?
The Real World hit TV in the early ’90s. Back in 1992, strangers roomed together in a New York City home, and they forged connections with each other that will last a lifetime. And the show was an instant success, according to creator Jonathan Murray. According to The Ringer, Murray said the first episode of the reality series tripled the rating of the music video programming at the time.
So, what was the point of The Real World? Season 1 cast member Kevin Powell called it “documentary filmmaking with a soap opera.” Contestants were asked to have authentic conversations and interactions without a competition aspect. But some of the original cast members said producers tried to create “conflict” for more viewers.
The show became so big that it was parodied on all fronts, too. Comedian Dave Chappelle had a sketch making fun of the show. Saturday Night Live also created two comedic sketches about the series, one in 1993 and another in 1996.
Was ‘The Real World’ canceled?
Those who grew up in the ’90s and ’00s are quite familiar with The Real World. So, did MTV cancel the series after so many years? It seems they did. According to PopSugar, the TV series was the longest running in MTV history, but it seemed to come to a standstill in 2017. Real World Seattle: Bad Blood, the 32nd season, came out that year.
Facebook seemed to revive the reality show with the help of MTV in 2019, though. The Real World: Atlanta premiered on Facebook Watch, Reality Blurred reports.
“The show that invented modern reality television returns to its roots,” Facebook posted when Atlanta was announced. “This reconnection to innocence for the trailblazing series strips away the polarization and cold anonymity of social media, the din of the 24-hour news cycle, and the facades of the Instafamous culture to find out what happens when seven strangers are picked to live in a house, stop being polite and start getting real.”
It appears this was the last season of The Real World, though the show was never officially canceled.
Is ‘The Real World’ still filming?
So, is The Real World still filming now? It seems fans are in luck. MTV is filming a reunion series involving the cast from the first 1992 season. The series, The Real World Homecoming: New York will premiere on Paramount+ in March 2021.
Eric Nies, Julie (Oliver) Gentry, Heather B. Gardner, Kevin Powell, Norman Korpi, Andre Comeau, and Rebecca Blasband are all slated to return, though they’re well into middle age now.
“It was trippy, almost 30 years later, walking back into the same loft with these people,” Murray told People. “What’s so cool is they all have their essential essence, the thing that made us choose them for this first social experiment.”
“We’ve all stayed in contact over the years. We just all haven’t been in the same room at the same time,” Nies, who’s now 49, added. “We’re all like, in our 50s, so I think the reaction is a little bit different at this age. But, yeah, it was really cool.”
We’re not sure if The Real World will continue filming after this reunion special, but perhaps producers will listen if fans want more.
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