It looks like drama is already bubbling in the “Real Housewives” world, again! Lisa Rinna, longtime star of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” is spilling some seriously hot tea about what really goes on behind the cameras.
In a new interview, Rinna claimed there is significant “pre-planning” involved in the show, specifically orchestrated by producers. She even revealed that during filming, “an editor sits in the back room and writes down everything.”
If we’re being honest, it’s not a total shocker, but it’s still juicy. So we’re here for it!
The actress-turned-reality-star, who spent eight seasons lighting up RHOBH with chaotic fashion and iconic one-liners, is finally confirming what fans have long suspected. In her words? The show is “very pre-planned.”
Well, Well, Well, Lisa Rinna Says It’s All Planned
Known for her bold looks, catchphrases, and never being far from the drama (hello, wine glass toss), Rinna was one of RHOBH’s most talked-about figures. Now, she’s getting candid about the reality behind the reality show.
“There’s a lot of people behind the scenes—a lot of people that make a show like that work,” Rinna said while on the “Don’t Talk About The Husbands” podcast. “It looks very effortless. You see us, say, at a lunch scene. It’s set up before—everybody gets an email saying that it’s coming up on Saturday, maybe in two weeks… You know that you’re going to someone’s house; you’re going to show up at this time. They send cars for you [so] you get driven there because they don’t want you to drink and drive.”
She continued, “There’s usually three cameras around you. It’s usually set up around an event or a lunch, or a party. There’s a lot of pre-planning that goes on. There’s a lot of producers. It can go on for hours at a time… You never really know when it’s going to end.”
Big yikes. So much for spur-of-the-moment drama.
The Future of RHOBH & Rinna’s Role in It
Though Rinna announced her exit from RHOBH in early 2023, after years of stirring the pot and dividing the fanbase, she’s not quite done with reality TV.
With Season 14 of “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” bringing in new cast members and reigniting old feuds, fans are already questioning just how “real” reality TV is.
“They decide they want this person here first. So there’s planning in that kind of stuff. There was waiting in the car a lot of times,” Rinna revealed. “Then they come out to your car, they mic you in your car—they have to put a mic on your back—and then they wait for something to happen.”
Even her husband, actor Harry Hamlin, chimed in with a behind-the-scenes tidbit: “The amount of film that is actually run through those cameras relative to the amount that shows up on the TV screen… the editors go through hundreds and hundreds of hours of footage to find 42 minutes of film.”
And speaking of editors, Rinna had even more to say. “I feel so sorry for those editors. They literally have somebody in a back room. So let’s say we’re filming at someone’s house — they would take a little back room and set up a monitor. There’s somebody there writing down everything everyone is saying in a scene. [They do this to] figure out what to use and where to go, and keep track.”
So while the glitz, glam, and tears may look spontaneous, it turns out much of it is mapped out long before the first sip of rosé.