The two most important ingredients for any successful reality TV show in Los Angeles are huge, multi-million dollar homes and their sun-drenched, scenic views.
As the drama of sex tape rumors, divorces, and petty arguments over “ugly leather pants” unfolded, palatial estates served as the glamorous backdrop for several binge-worthy series.
Through eight peppy, light-hearted seasons on Netflix, “Selling Sunset” has earned a reputation as one of the most-watched reality television shows in the country, thanks in large part to its depiction of luxury living in Los Angeles. And the opulent, lavishly decorated mansions that frequently appear on Bravo's “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” are also an integral part of the series' success.
But last week's catastrophic wildfires have effectively upended this desirable component of LA's reality TV schedule. The view of the mountains was obscured by clouds of smoke. The twinkling city lights surrounding the famous Hollywood sign were overshadowed by red flames that stretched across acres, destroying 12,000 buildings in their path.
Among the evacuees were some of the stars of these shows. Some lost their homes and belongings. The destruction, their grief and their actions have cast a different light on some of the most well-known – and even hated – reality TV stars.
Spencer Pratt, 41, first rose to fame in the early 2000s as a supervillain on the MTV reality show “The Hills” and is part of “Speidi” along with his wife Heidi Montag, 38. tells how his family is doing after their house burned down.
The couple's 2,300-square-foot hillside retreat featured breathtaking views of the Santa Monica Mountains, an extensive crystal collection worth more than $1 million, a hummingbird sanctuary and a large selection of framed photos of the couple on various tabloid covers . The couple bought the home in 2017 for $2.5 million.
Jason Oppenheim, 47, whose brokerage firm, the Oppenheim Group, is the focus of “Selling Sunset,” is known for both his numerous romantic relationships and his multi-million dollar offers. But he has taken on the role of activist, appearing on news shows to denounce landlords who are charging exorbitantly high rents in the face of record demand.
“The Real Housewives of Orange County” cast member Gina Kirschenheiter, 40, and her boyfriend Travis Mullen, 40, drew viewers into their strained relationship after Ms. Kirschenheiter asked him to move out of her home.
After the fires, the couple, both real estate agents, appeared together on social media and announced that they would donate their substantial commissions to hundreds of thousands of displaced fire victims looking to buy or rent in Orange County.
“We just wanted to help,” Ms. Kirschenheiter said in an interview. “I would never profit from someone else’s tragedy. So Travis and I thought, the only thing we can do is relocate people, find them housing, give them that money back and make it our contribution to them.”
These reality TV stars are now experiencing life without filters and without production crews, a change that could have a major impact on upcoming seasons of current shows.
The 19th season of “The Real Housewives of Orange County” is set to begin filming in the coming weeks, and the fires and Ms. Kirschenheiter's current efforts to find homes for displaced Angelenos in Orange County could be a central storyline.
“Given the timing, I would say the L.A. fires will probably be covered,” Ms. Kirschenheiter said.
The eighth season of “Selling Sunset” aired in September. The show was preparing to begin filming season nine, expected to air later this year, when the fires broke out. The arguments, real estate listings and open houses could be jarring for fans who are aware of the direct impact the fires have had on some of the stars.
Chrishell Stause, 43, who has been with the show since its inception, fled her home in desperation in the middle of the night, like thousands of other Los Angeles residents.
She later learned that her house had survived the fires.
With no cameras to capture the action, Ms. Stause is likely to recount the fear and adrenaline of the moment once filming gets underway again and the series begins to grapple with a city that is indelibly marked, said Adam DiVello, the executive producer of the series show.
“We had a big group meeting about how to move forward, and that's something we want to cover on the show,” Mr. DiVello said. The terrible devastation that scorched entire neighborhoods and reduced homes and businesses to piles of ash was something “we cannot ignore,” he said. “We’re doing a show about real estate and it’s beyond devastating.”
Mr. Oppenheim's role as a critic of price-gouging landlords is also discussed. He said he was shocked, after several customers whose homes had burned down asked him for help finding rental properties, to see dozens of properties online whose prices had increased by 50 percent or more. California state law prohibits landlords from raising rents by more than 10 percent during a state of emergency.
“I have to call attention to this,” he said in an interview, “because this is completely inappropriate – morally, ethically and legally.”
“We are a reality show. And that is our reality,” he said.
Bozoma Saint John, the newest cast member of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” was vacationing in Zambia when she discovered her 2,500-square-foot beach house in Malibu was destroyed in the wildfires, according to a video obtained by X shared. At first I thought, “You know what, this can’t be real,” she said in an interview. “Because when a house burns, I think there’s still stuff left. It doesn’t all just disappear, does it?”
The show is now in its 14th season and was filmed last year. It is currently airing on Bravo, but fans have been watching her struggle with the loss on social media.
Ms. Saint John, 47, who also owns a home in Hancock Park, said she bought the property in 2021 after her offers for four other homes in Malibu were rejected. “For many people like me, the unfortunate reality is that even if you have the money to buy the house, you will still be rejected,” said Ms. Saint John, who ended up buying her house in the name of a trust to protect her identity to hide from the buyer.
She said she had not yet seen the extent of the damage to her property, aside from videos shared on social media. “Maybe it's the fire, maybe it's the images, maybe it's the destruction that's left behind, but it feels like a hellish nightmare,” she said. “Everything is gone. I think there may be a misconception that I don't have anything there because it's my second home, and that's just not true. A home is a home.”
Alex Baskin, the executive producer of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” “The Real Housewives of Orange County,” “Vanderpump Rules” and “The Valley,” wrote in an email that situations like Ms. Saint John should not be dismissed. “We document all the events in the actors’ lives. We will definitely report on this as it obviously affects the cast and they deal with the reality and consequences of each situation.”
Some reality TV celebrities are no longer regulars on the shows that made them famous or their shows have been canceled, but the fires have thrust them into a new spotlight.
Mauricio Umansky, 54, best known as Kyle Richards' estranged husband on “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” was the host of his own show, “Buying Beverly Hills,” in which his real estate agent introduced The Agency. His show was canceled last March after two seasons.
The brokerage has more than 120 offices worldwide and he said at least 30 of his agents in Los Angeles lost their homes. Mr. Umansky's mother had evacuated her home in Pacific Palisades and was still staying with Mr. Umansky earlier this week when he spoke to The New York Times. She didn't yet know whether her house had survived.
Just days after the fires began, Mr. Umansky set up a relief center in Marina del Rey filled with donations including clothing, baby items, electronics and toiletries. He had called for new luggage to be donated to evacuees on Instagram, and through a customer close to Elon Musk, he secured several Starlink kits for high-speed internet, which he donated to rescue workers. And he was busy sending messages in a text thread to some of the city's top luxury agents, including Kurt Rappaport, Tracy Tutor and Mr. Oppenheim, about how they can pool resources to help the thousands of residents who need their homes have lost.
“I have a platform and I have a voice,” he said. “Right now, real estate agents are also first responders in many ways. You have firefighters and police officers, but what's the next step? It’s us, the people, who help people find new homes.”
Although Mr. Pratt and Ms. Montag have appeared on various reality TV shows since their star appeared on “The Hills” in the early 2000s, they have largely been seen through streaming reruns.
But the loss of their Pacific Palisades home and the openness with which they express their feelings on social media have renewed interest in a couple that fans loved to hate. Visceral images have softened her image: A camera in her son's bedroom showed her son's bed burned in the shape of a heart. “Seeing this live will haunt me forever,” Mr. Pratt wrote on Instagram.
Mr. Pratt has also used live streams on social media to urge fans to stream Mrs. Montag's 2010 album “Superficial” to generate revenue so he can rebuild. Celebrities like Flavor Flav and model Emily Ratajkowski posted about the album, which reached No. 1 on iTunes.
Although many people have criticized the couple's frequent posts, the public now seems to be behind them. An X subscriber recently posted, “Someone needs to give Spencer Pratt his own reality show ASAP.”
“I need every check possible right now,” Mr. Pratt said in an interview. “Any chance of success, of rebuilding the worst thing that ever happened to us and turning it into some form of hope and light, is a (good thing). There is nothing better than being on a television network, so of course doing a reality show would be helpful to continue our success in rebuilding.”