Fake Reality TV Shows That Tricked Many Viewers

Television was the primary source of entertainment for everyone until social media took over the world. As a result, a slew of new shows have emerged to cater to a wide range of interests, including everything from cars to weddings, cakes, and pawn shops. These broadcasts are usually referred to as “reality shows” since they are said to reflect people’s daily lives and the activities that they participate in. What you do if we told you that many of these shows were scripted and weren’t genuinely “true”? Once you see the trends in their stories, you’ll understand that many of these shows aren’t as accurate as they claim to be. Here are a few shows you may have believed to be factual at one time.

South Beach Tow

No one can dispute that the pranks on South Beach Tow are incredibly funny. Bernice is one of the show’s most beloved characters, and we adore her. You may recall her using her hands to save herself from falling and then quickly catching a violator. The show is obviously a scam, but we don’t think that makes it any less amusing to watch.

Duck Dynasty

This television show centers around the lives of the Robertsons of Louisiana. The show focuses on the family’s duck-hunting operation, which they own and operate themselves. Almost everyone in the cast has a blood or marital link to someone else. All of the above assertions are true, however producers often include “dramatic” components to make things interesting. Furthermore, some reports claim that the production staff incorporates “bleeps” even when no curse words are pronounced.

Undercover Boss

If you’ve ever worked with an arrogant coworker, you’re probably looking forward to seeing them punished. The bosses infiltrate the team on the show to see what happens when they aren’t present to monitor. After all, this is a useful approach of determining which jobs within the business must be accomplished. It is, however, a scripted performance. Even worse, the employers do not keep their pledges to their employees.

Hardcore Pawn

You’ll find it interesting to watch the Gold family manage their pawnshop in Detroit’s dangerous 8 Mile neighborhood. The question is, does the shop really attract these weird people? If you ever felt the arguments provided on the show were too good to be true, you were correct: they were. All of the ‘fights’ were pre-staged, according to a couple of witnesses who attended the spectacle. To be honest, it’s difficult to believe Les, Seth, and Ashley will get into a fight with a customer that regularly.

Project Runway

To be clear, even if a show is incredibly popular, it is still possible that it can be a hoax. Many contestants, including Jack Mackenroth and Daniel Esquivel, have expressed their displeasure with the show’s judging, which has received widespread attention. To be more explicit, the producers had a tendency, according to the latter, to create the show in such a way that the contests were sensationalized to the maximum reasonable extent.

Cake Boss

Ghost Hunters

As well as gaining momentum over time, the show paved the way for several spin-off shows to be created. However, it has suffered accusations of being a phony reality TV show. According to former case manager Donna Lacroix, the viewers were indeed correct with these accusations.

The Jerry Springer Show

Is this one a huge shocker? After all, the concept of the show and some of the guests are certainly bizarre. It doesn’t take a genius to see that the show is in fact fake. To spell it out, the storylines and guests on the show are completely fabricated for entertainment purposes.

Fixer Upper

Before filming began, the show’s featured property owners had already completed their acquisition! As a result, they only act at the start of each episode when picking which house they will reside in. Joanna’s furnishings and décor, which she chose and organized herself, are also out of their budget, and they won’t be able to keep them unless they pay additional money. In addition, the entire house has not been entirely renovated and rebuilt. Chip allegedly refused to work on the house unless the cameras were also present.

Keeping Up With The Kardashians

You mustn’t have left the house for a long time if you haven’t heard of this show. Keeping Up With The Kardashians, which debuted in 2007 and has been filmed ever since, is centered on the Kardashian-Jenner family. People kept a careful check on their loved ones as they progressed through life’s stages. This understanding explains why some sequences had to be reshot and edited to make them more consistent and unified. According to the divorce proceedings filed by Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries, Russell Jay claimed that two or more scenes involving Humphries were reshot or manufactured. The show’s editors, it turns out, play a key role in adding drama into the proceedings.

Storage Wars

As soon as David “Dave” Hester was fired from the show, he made it known to the rest of the world that the show is scripted. An analogous assertion may be made about the interviews they conduct. He also said that the makers had kept some interesting objects hidden in the storage lockers. He also stated that the auctions were a ruse and that he had been tricked.

Jersey Shore

When the show launched in the United Kingdom in 2009, the rest of the globe first saw the cast. The show does not depict the stars’ complete lives, despite the fact that they are real-life friends. Many of the incidents featured on the show, according to extras and locals, were arranged ahead of time. A lawyer who lives across the street claimed to have witnessed them practice their walkabouts. In addition to the aforementioned, it has been alleged that they reshoot scenes from a variety of different perspectives. They have effectively practiced every facial expression and piece of dialogue that we see and hear.

Say Yes To The Dress

Brides-to-be are followed as they search for their dream wedding gown at the Kleinfeld department store in New York. However, the truth is that the producers had already settled on these women. They ask the ladies to repeat or accentuate their remarks in order to make the scenes more emotional. Furthermore, the shop is substantially smaller than the show would have you assume. Many individuals who come into the store to look about are startled to realize that this is the case.

Long Island Medium

Follow Theresa Caputo, a woman who claims to be able to connect customers with their deceased loved ones. Even if the notion is intriguing, we can understand why some viewers were wary of the show’s premise. She has been in the heart of a flood of controversy as a result of reports that she has access to sensitive information about the show’s viewers and clients. Producers employ background checks, surveys, and social media to get to know the folks they’ll be working with. They then return to Caputo with their findings. Sounds dishonest to us.

Cupcake Wars

The show progresses to each stage, beginning with four candidates representing various bakeries from across the United States. Each of them competes against the other in three rounds of cupcake baking in the hopes of winning a place in a thousand-cupcake tournament. Almost every time, there’s a challenge in the first round, and it almost always entails using odd cupcake components. They are rumored to be aware of the ingredients even before they are presented on the show, however, though this has not been confirmed.

Naked And Afraid

Participants are sent to exotic locations, stripped naked, and filmed while they attempt to survive on their own as part of the show’s structure. Some competitors have noted that things on the show are not always what they appear to be at first glance. To begin with, it is strongly dependent on the decisions of the editors. Aside from that, the production crew supplies amenities that are not commonly available in the natural setting to the participants. Supplements, prescription drugs, and tampons are just a few examples of what we’re talking about. Regardless of the ending, the idea was tough to trust from the start.

Basketball Wives

Women who are married to some of the NBA’s most notable figures are among the show’s stars. However, it turns out that not everyone is happy with the way things are going. According to Matt Barnes, a former cast member, the show’s staged and scripted nature has been revealed. Tanya Young backed up her claim with documentation. She claimed that they intended to put the ladies against one another in order to create drama. From the start, it was tough to embrace the idea.

The Hills

To the best of our knowledge, this show appears to have checked off every box on the reality TV show check list. On the show you will see teen anguish, backstabbing, and lovers’ feuds. It appears to be substantially scripted on the surface, however. Spencer Pratt and Heidi Montag, he claims, once had to shoot the same scene 15 times to get it perfect. He became upset and ejected her from the house when she mistook her cycle for pregnancy. The show’s creators also stated that a large number of people were cast for the series. Lauren’s coworker’s best buddy, as well as her own best friend, are included in this.

Last Comic Standing

The producers for this show were already on the look out for undiscovered talent whilst it was airing. If these scouted individuals went on to participate, they would be rewarded with cash prizes, or at the very least some good exposure. In reality, the producers had a bigger influence on the vote itself rather than any of the judges or contestants. Whence the winner was eventually announced, the audience erupted in rage. Additionally ,the show makes extensive use of editing to make decent performances look worse than they are.

The Apprentice

Many people believe that this show was the main reason for the former President thrusting into the public eye. The show centers around around an interview for a position at Donald Trump’s company, revolving around a group of businessman and celebrities who attend. The producers, just like producers of other shows on this list, created a script for specific segments in which a character will be fired. Additionally, contestants are pre-informed that they will be fired before the scene even takes place. It has even come to light that the eventual winner doesn’t actually end up working for Trump, but receives a piece of paper to display on their wall!

Love Island

When you mix The Bachelor and Survivor, what do you get? You’ve got… well, this show will provide the solution to that question. If you’ve never heard of it, the basic premise is that a group of singles gets together and spends the summer on a tropical island. They establish a team and begin dating each other because of the promise of money, victory, and romance at the end of it all. Everything about the show is staged, according to Reddit, from the intimate scenes to the arguments. On television, only the most “realistic” versions of the show are presented.

Breaking Amish

Allow us to bring to your attention the truth about this amazing television show. According to Jezebel, the stars of the show had been away from the community for a long time, based on official papers. This is in stark contradiction to the show’s assertions. They had to keep in mind that this was their “first time” entering into the unknown.

Britain’s Got Talent

A varied spectrum of participants showcase their abilities on the popular American talent show, which also has a British edition. There are dancers, acrobats, magicians, and pretty much anything else you can think of. A dog even took the audience entirely by surprise at one point. The “Jules and Matisse” dog act was named the competition’s winner in 2005. In actuality, the outcomes had been tampered with. The actual Matisse was too afraid to attempt such an act, the producers enlisted the help of a dog that resembled Matisse. Fix!

Restaurant Stakeout

Willie Degel, a restaurateur, decided to install surveillance cameras in a struggling restaurant. This was carried out in order to determine the source of the computer’s malfunction. The system was designed to identify and reprimand employees who were not doing their tasks effectively. He’d approach them after that and, if necessary, fire them in a dramatic manner to draw their attention. This is almost entirely a fake, just so you know. Before filming began, the Food Network called the restaurant’s owner and did a screen-test on the employees, according to the owner of the restaurant featured in the first season. Aside from that, customers were told to make as much noise as they possibly could.

Dance Moms

Did you ever think that the arguments on Dance Moms was a little excessive? Well, if that’s the case we admire you, because you were absolutely correct! In a 2015 interview with USA Today, Maddie Ziegler admitted that dramatic scenes are often staged. Ziegler told:  “It’s hard to do a reality show when there’s so much crying and drama. The producers set it up to make us all yell at each other… The moms have a fake fight sometimes. Afterward, they just start talking and laugh about it.”

Hell’s Kitchen

This show certainly wouldn’t be the same without foul-mouthed Gordon Ramsay’s rough hosting. We only sit and hope for disaster so we can see the passionate Scotsman yell at his sue-chefs! This is certainly one of the most entertaining shows currently on TV! Just keep in mind, the show does follow a script. Also, customers in the restaurant are actually paid extras. The proof is in the pudding though, you can’t fake good food.

Toddlers And Tiaras

Do you ever cringe when you watch this show? We’re not entirely sure why, but this show does have somewhat of a following! Anyways, Ranker has said that many of the events on the show are actually fake, scripted. For example, actors on the show are told to repeat what they say and add drama to the show. Of course this is all done to make the show more interesting, if that is even possible.

Survivor

If you just read the premise, the show actually sounds like a real-life adaptation of The Hunger Games! The contestants are divided into teams and left to their own devices in the wilderness, competing in various challenges. Since the premise is actually good, it is disappointing to discover that most of the challenges on the show are in fact fake. For some of them, producers have even admitted to using body doubles. Participants are also required to act out various scenes. One contestant even claimed that her departure from the show was rigged, but she might have just been salty about being evicted we suppose.

American Idol

American Idol debuted on TV in 2001 and was an instant success. The show begins with people auditioning across the country until the judges find someone worthy of the title of being that year’s “American Idol”. The majority of hopeful singers do not progress to the next stage, but not for singing reasons. Prior to auditions, scots re dispatched to locate worthy singers! Many of the finalists will have actually been specifically selected.

Catfish

MTV’s Catfish is hosted by Max and Nev, the latter of which was once “catfished” by an online profile only to find out that the person wasn’t who they said they were. The pair take this story in their stride and try to help others in the same situation. Despite this, it seems that the show isn’t quite as honest and straightforward as we may think. The producers are rumored to do everything backwards! Yep, that means Catfishes actually apply first, rather than the ‘catfished’.

The Voice

According to competitors, The Voice is also rigged. Adam Wiener, a rock singer, took to Facebook to talk about how the show had scouted him. Ultimately, he declined the offer because it was pre-cast. Additionally, the producers choose the songs and musical styles that the contestants have to perform. Fans were disgruntled by this news and began to doubt the authenticity of the show.

Property Brothers

We’re also devastated to learn of this. A pair of Canadian brothers have seemingly teamed up to help couples find their dream home. Unfortunately, some of the show’s elements are absolutely false. To begin, Jonathan and Drew do not restore the entire property, instead concentrate on a few carefully selected areas. Not only that, but key moments are reshot in order to give the audience as much “drama” as possible. Finally, the brothers frequently exhibit homes that are out of their price range, prompting the couples to embark on a renovation project.

Pawn Stars

Who’d have realized that this hit History Channel show is almost totally scripted? While the Harrisons still own the store, it has recently evolved into more of a tourist attraction. Celebrities no longer work regular hours in Nevada due to the state’s privacy regulations. Aside from that, the cast members have already agreed on a pricing point with the sellers before the program is shot.

The Real Housewives

To be honest, the idea that everything is scripted isn’t really novel. It was only after Theresa Guidice swore under oath that this was the case that it was confirmed. The producers had previously organized the meetings between the women. Aside from that, the same can be stated for large group conflicts. Yikes.

The Bachelor/The Bachelorette

We can’t dispute that both of these shows are a lot of fun to watch. It’s not quite as natural as the producers would have you believe. Rumor has it that the performers are supplied the lines ahead of time. Aside from that, they use the dramatic participants to force them into embarrassing circumstances for the sake of drama. There will be a rose ceremony as well. Because the cast is so carefully chosen, they already know who will make it to the finals!

The Biggest Loser

The show’s impressive equipment is absolutely phony, despite the fact that fans are eager to learn how much weight the contestants have shed. In fact, two days before the tournament, the candidates were weighed and measured. Furthermore, the qualifications of the show’s medical personnel have been called into question! They’re regarded to be untrained to provide the contestants medication. Furthermore, the candidates are manipulated to appear more lethargic and indolent than they actually are.

The Simple Life

Viewers were enthralled by Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie doing menial tasks in little towns around the country. We’ll be the first to acknowledge that the show was quite entertaining. Paris later admitted that the producers asked them to play a ‘troublemaker’ and a ‘feisty blonde’ instead of themselves. She also claimed that she enjoyed playing the airhead and using a baby voice. She still uses this persona on a regular basis! Given the show’s five-year lifespan, it’s understandable.

House Hunters

This is one of the most popular series on HGTV. It’s just a letdown to discover that it’s just another bogus spectacle. The competitors have already picked which house they will purchase before they ever stand in front of a camera! They often have already purchased the property before filming. Making matters worse, the show occasionally casts young actors in the role of homeowners.

What Not To Wear

This show has a good premise, but it isn’t as engaging as you might anticipate. Contestants on the show are given $5,000 to undergo a makeover and new clothes. It turns out, however, that it has a number of faults. After discarding their old garments, the makers donate them to charity! The products purchased by the participants must also be taxed. Furthermore, the clothing is carefully designed to fit them. They are, however, liable for the expense of the adjustment.

Pimp My Ride

If you were alive in the early 2000s, you must have heard of this show! It was one of reality television’s most talked-about shows at the time. A rapper named Xzibit showed up at various people’s homes and gave their cars a makeover. It appears that the makeover was only for show, because it was simply cosmetic. According to one show participant, the car was hardly running when it was returned to them. There were occasions when getting the autos fixed may take up to six months.

Cribs

A new MTV smash was on the way! It featured celebrities giving the audience tours of their houses. They were surprised by the elaborate details of the fans’ homes. It lasted 13 years and featured a slew of well-known personalities. However, the truth has since come to light. Following that, a woman sued MTV for characterizing her rented residence as the birthplace of Ja Rules. Oops.

90 Day Fiancé

There have been various problems with this show since the beginning. It mostly takes advantage of foreigners who marry Americans in order to obtain a K-1 visa. The fact that the pair must marry within 90 days adds to the difficulty. If this does not happen, their tourist visa will expire. They must either return home or face deportation as a result. A show with this concept should naturally be tense, but the producers prefer to add fuel to the fire to make the situations more interesting.

Divorce Court

It’s indisputable that reality television thrives on drama. The drama of marriage troubles and divorces is unparalleled. This show focuses on the issues and turmoil that arise in marriage. In the goal of achieving an agreement, it listens to both parties. Everything, however, has been shown to be a fraud. Despite the fact that their daughter and her boyfriend were not married, they were approached to appear on the show, according to a source. They were also given a make-believe backstory.

The Osbournes

To allow the Kardashian-Jenners to run, the Osbournes took a walk. Kelly, Jack, Sharon, and Ozzy appeared to go all out for the show, which featured plenty of profanity. The crowd was enthralled by this weird yet loveable family. It also featured a lot of amusing pranks that the crowd enjoyed. Unfortunately, everything that transpired on the episode was phony because it was primarily staged. Producers would direct them what to do in every episode of the reality show.

Teen Mom

MTV isn’t known for making genuine reality shows, to be fair. This show was a lot like the ones we talked about earlier in the essay. It was published following the film 16 and Pregnant, which highlighted young mothers’ experiences after giving birth. Many of the arrests, breakups, and drama that took place were actually factual. Regrettably, the producers enjoyed enhancing the drama of discussions by editing them.

Beauty and the Geek

This reality show teamed gorgeous women with nerdy men to compete in challenges, as the name suggests. The show’s geeks were portrayed as awkward men who couldn’t hold a woman’s attention. This was not the case at all. It appears that one of them had a girlfriend at the time. Furthermore, the show’s producers are reported to have recruited actors to portray a number of candidates.

I Am Cait

The gender transition of Caitlyn Jenner made headlines. This presentation portrays what it was like for her to remain true to herself in the face of adversity. Before we go any further, it’s worth noting that the first season was inspired by genuine occurrences. The following one, on the other hand, cannot be regarded to be in the same category. Because the changeover had already been known to the public, the creators created imaginary scenarios for season two.

Famously Single

Coaches strive to pair single celebs with people in this E! Network reality show. The stars live together, go to therapy sessions, and open up about their love lives. Fans have been distrustful of them because they aren’t exactly the best actors. It’s clear how much of what happens on the episode is pre-recorded. In addition, other celebrities and people from their past are tossed into the mix!

Total Bellas

Everyone knows that WWE was staged right? We’re unsure why anyone thinks a reality show about Nikki and Brie Bella would be any different in this regard. It also revolves around John Cena and Daniel Bryan, their respective ‘beaus’. Isn’t it quite obvious that the show’s producers fabricated a number of events shown on the show? Additionally, the producers loved exaggerating fights between Nikki and John Cena, seeing as how they are both powerful personalities.

WAGS

When it first aired, it was one of the most popular E! shows. It tracked the lives of prominent sportsmen’ wives. To keep the viewer interested, the show relied on contrived scenarios built up by the producers among the women. The competitiveness and dialogues among the women were not genuine, notwithstanding the genuineness of their actual marriages. Aside from that, the producers wanted to keep things interesting by bringing in ladies who weren’t dating real sportsmen, so weren’t in fact ‘Wags’.