Why Fans Think Million Dollar Listing New York Is A Fake Reality Show

Bravo’s popular series Million Dollar Listing New York has been a hit with fans for nine seasons, but the drama surrounding the brokers in New York has fans wondering what’s real and what’s fake. Viewers have been following Ryan Serhant, Fredrik Eklund, Luis Ortiz, Tyler Whitman, Steve Gold, and newcomer Kirsten Jordan try and sell luxury homes in the Big Apple since 2012, and they can’t get enough of it. However, fans can’t help but feel the show is not real.

Real estate reality TV shows have become increasingly popular over the years. Shows like Flip Or Flop, Property Brothers, Fixer Upper, and House Hunters have drawn in millions of viewers on HGTV. But after The New York Times reported that Property Brothers was basically scripted, it put other realty shows into question. House Hunters, a show that follows individuals, couples, or families looking to move into a home with the help of a local real estate agent, has been exposed for staging the show and even hired young actors to be a part of House Hunters International. Do fans feel Million Dollar Listing New York has taken the same fabricated route?

Like the majority of reality shows, MDLNY viewers feel the show is staged. According to certain reports, they’re not wrong about this assumption. In an article in The New York Times, Holly Parker, who worked at the same brokerage as Fredrik Eklund in season 1, told the publication that the broker open houses were sometimes staged at properties that were already sold. The show also reshoots scenes and films and edits out of chronological order. For instance, camera crews will occasionally film a scene at a different time of day than when they actually occur.

Fans think some of the drama in the show is fabricated to boost ratings. It’s not uncommon for producers to meddle in shows to make them more entertaining for viewers. In contrast, certain shows have been exposed for meddling to boost ratings; however, hit shows like Selling Sunset claim to be real.

While fans and other cast members have doubted or spoke out against the franchise’s realness, Ryan Serhant has defended Million Dollar Listing New York, saying the show is 100% real. Unlike The Property Brothers and other reality TV shows, there are no redos or retakes, nor is there any acting, according to the 38-year-old. Ryan told the Huffington Post the show is “far more real than people probably understand.” He added, “Everything is real, everything is organic, which is why you see so many deals die on the show.” Real or fake, viewers still can’t get enough of the brokers in New York and the luxurious homes that they sell.

Source: The New York Times, Huffington Post