Well, it’s all happening… again.
Vanderpump Rules is returning much sooner than planned.
As BravoCon got underway Friday, a major announcement about the half-dead reality series that got a jolt of life thanks to #Scandoval, of all things.
The hit series returns in “January and follows the former SURvers as they pick up the pieces following a scandal that sent shockwaves through the zeitgeist,” according to the press release.
“With resentments, acceptance and shifting alliances, this group attempts to navigate the lines drawn in the sand while rebuilding friendships, developing their businesses and healing from past relationships,” Bravo adds.
The cast includes Lisa Vanderpump, Ariana Madix, James Kennedy, Katie Maloney, Lala Kent, Scheana Shay, Tom Sandoval, and Tom Schwartz will comprise the main cast.
The cabler also teases that Ally Lewber and Brock Davies will be back as friends of the main cast.
Notably missing from the cast is Raquel Leviss, who had a months-long affair with Sandoval behind Madix’s back.
Despite hopes of her return from fans, she never signed on to film any more episodes following the controversial, uncensored reunion episodes.
Yes, the scandal gave the show some of its strongest ratings ever, but how will it bounce back without Leviss?
With this show, you can never count anything out, but mostly, it’s all cheating scandals with this cast.
Leviss, for her part, previously announced she wouldn’t return during a bombshell-laden interview with Bethenny Frankel.
At the time, Leviss said that she almost went back to the show, and revealed that she wasn’t making money off of the scandal like her costars.
“I haven’t seen a single penny,” she said.
“It’s not fair. And I feel like a toddler saying, ‘It’s not fair.’ But it really isn’t. And I feel like I’ve been portrayed as the ultimate villain.
“My mistakes that I’ve made on camera live on forever. And you mentioned something about the addiction of doing reality TV and the way that they always dangle that carrot in front of you, like, ‘Well, you need to tell your side of the story otherwise it’s gonna be written for you.’”
“And that’s terrifying. So I almost went back, I know just because of that.”
Without Leviss, it’s hard to tell what comes next for the show, but there have been rumblings that former stars Kristen Doute and Jax Taylor have filmed scenes as they prepare for their spinoff.
If you watch Vanderpump Rules online, you know the cast clocks in whenever anything happens.
The good news is that we’ll continue to get uncensored reunions.
Bravo and Peacock dropped the news Friday, which means if you’re a fan of people yelling expletives at each other without that pesky BLEEP every couple of seconds, then you’re in luck.
Me? I like the beeps because I usually spend way too much time thinking about other words that could have been said.
“Fork you, you carrot,” is one of my favorites.
My hope is that Peacock will give the option whether to watch the episodes with or without the bleeps because it’s all about choices!
There should be way more announcements about BravoCon over the weekend.
Yes, Bravo is going all in on this Comic-Con-like event that’s exclusive to Bravo content.
What are your thoughts on Vanderpump Rules returning so early?
I think the series would have benefited from a longer hiatus, but Bravo is clearly worried that people will have forgotten about it by the time it returns.
What are your thoughts on Leviss not returning?
Do you think the uncensored episodes is a good idea?
Hit the comments.
Paul Dailly is the Associate Editor for TV Fanatic. Follow him on X.
