MSN TV Blog - Reality TV

On vacation from filming, the reality clan keeps on filming

By Corey Levitan Jun 5, 2012 10:14AM
bossip.com

The Kardashians feel they don't spend enough time in front of cameras. That's why, on a recent trip to the Dominican Republic, they felt it necessary to film their own video for the Notorious B.I.G. song "Hypnotize."

The vid shows they like goofing around with each other, and that's great. Particularly fun is Bruce Jenner's choice in bongos: Kris Jenner's butt.

 

Bing: More about 'Keeping Up With the Kardashians'

 

"We always have the craziest time filming these," Celebuzz quotes Kourtney Kardashian. "It's become a tradition now." (This BuzzFeed post  links to the similar Kardashian lip-synch videos produced during similar vacations.)

 

Also: Summer reality TV fare | Summer TV guide for parents

 

However, the latest video shows nothing more compelling than familiar faces and friends pretending to rap and grind like Biggie while positioned on different areas of a yacht, then making it rain with fake money on a beach. Here, check it out for yourself:

In addition, it is fairly elaborately produced for its lack of content, revealing the precious vacay time spent setting up shots, then shooting multiple takes.

Doesn't this family already do this for a living?

What brings this tradition to a higher level of wrong is the family's choice to proudly release these clips to YouTube instead of keeping them in their private DVD collection.

 

Then again, Kardashians don't have a sterling reputation for keeping private videos very private, do they?


"Keeping Up With the Kardashians" airs Sundays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on E!

 

'Toddlers & Tiaras' girl gets her own series

By Corey Levitan Jun 1, 2012 9:52AM
womansday.com

In the surest sign yet that the world will come to an end this year, Honey Boo Boo Child is getting her own spinoff.

According to US Weekly, six-year-old Alana Thompson -- introduced to TLC viewers via "Toddlers & Tiaras" in January -- is confirmed to star in "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo."

 

Bing: More about Honey Boo Boo Child | More on 'Toddlers & Tiaras'

The new reality series -- so far consisting of six half-hour episodes -- will intersperse glimpses of the toddler's professional life with her tiara-less personal life among the mudpits of rural Georgia.

Viewers will get to see plenty of their favorite star along with her belching mom, June; her chalk-mining dad, Sugar Bear; and sisters Lauryn "Pumpkin," 12; Jessica "Chubbs," 15; and Anna "Chickadee," who is 17 and pregnant.


A statement from the apparently proud network calls Ms. Boo Boo Child "more than just a Go-Go Juice-drinking beauty queen."

In other words, the Mayan calendar is correct.

 

 

More: Must See Reality TV


Tell us what you think about Honey Boo Boo Child on MSN TV Facebook and MSN TV Twitter.

 

"Toddlers & Tiaras" airs Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET/PT on TLC.



 

The 21-year-old really wants world to know she and her implants are not expecting

By Kenny Herzog May 31, 2012 10:15AM
See, 'Teen Mom' tabloid magnet Jenelle Evans is totes not preggers. Just thought we'd settle that ongoing debate.

Bing: More on Jenelle Evans | "Teen Mom"

The MTV reality show's most high-profile and controversial alum has managed to keep herself and the series in headlines practically without interruption the past couple years. Whether it's multiple arrests, impulsive engagements to guys who wear shirts like this or going under the knife for breast implants, Evans has a nose for being newsworthy.

Most recently, she's been the subject of pregnancy rumors, leading to much concerted speculation about the possibility of expanding her empire into a "Legal Drinking Aged-Mom" spinoff. Or at least by us. Alas, Evans set the proverbial record straight by Tweeting this bikini pic to your left, along with the inspiring message, "No I'm not pregnant. No I'm not fat. Check out my new bathing suit. :) I love it. SO BRIGHT!" Much like her future, we're sure. 

 

The CW's new dance docu-drama serves up their signature sultry angst

By Sona Charaipotra May 31, 2012 12:16AM
Photo courtesy the CW
The CW's newest sure bet? The six-week reality dance drama "Breaking Pointe," which follows the travails of a cast of beautiful young things at the Ballet West, a cut-throat regional company in Salt Lake City, Utah.

It's got all the right ingredients: gorgeous costumes, a pair of sexy, strong brothers (think "Vampire Diaries" in tights), competition, tears and adrenaline. Beckanne, 19, is on the fast track to principal dancer, while the current reigning queen bee, Allison, can't be pushed to commit to her on-again, off-again love Ronald. Meanwhile, his kid brother, Rex, is glad to have a family member to lean on in this bright new world -- but he's worried he may lose his new love, Katie, if she doesn't clean up her act and start pulling it together in the classroom. The pilot introduces key figures amongst the company's 40 dancers -- and starts on a turning point as they receive their contract renewals. Or not, as the case may be.  

Fascinating stuff. Or at least it should be. But there's something not quite there. Perhaps it's the all-white cast in the pilot, which may not even occur to some viewers, despite the where's-the-diversity backlash instigated by the HBO drama "Girls." Here, though, the world is clearly a niche, a small, specific demo that lives insular lives in a largely-white community who likes its dancers as pure as the driven snow. Still, as beautiful as the dancers are, the fact that most of them are pale, lean brunette's may leave viewers forgetting who's who.

This is compounded with the lethargic, underplayed energy of the storytelling -- it's all lovely images, shadows and lush costumes. But it moves at a lull -- you know something should be happening, but given the breakneck speed at which most plots progress on TV these days, this one almost seems, well, quiet.

Still, the insight the show offers into the exciting yet insular world of these dancers should draw viewers in -- and keep them there. 

Here's a sneak peek of the premiere:
"Breaking Pointe" premieres Thursday, May 31 at 8 p.m. on the CW. 
 

Lindsay's notorious giver of life gets her own series, and reportedly guests on another

By Kenny Herzog May 30, 2012 9:35AM
There are a handful of on-screen matriarchs currently competing for worst TV mom. Neglectful Sarah Linden of "The Killing" and vindictive "Mad Men" debutante Betty Draper come to mind. Nevermind incestuous manipulator Gillian Darmody on "Boardwalk Empire." Of course, those are fictional characters whose imperfections heighten artificial drama. Contrarily, Dina Lohan isn't a scripted fabrication. She is, in fact, Lindsay and Ali's actual, real-life mother, and is potentially about to give America two more reasons to question her parental aptitude.  

Bing: More on "Hollywood Exes" | "DramaMamas" | Dina Lohan 

First, Celebuzz has learned from the former "Living with Lohan" principal herself that Dina is directly involved in a currently network-less reality show titled "DramaMamas." The series will document a fledgling musical on its journey from written word to Broadway-aspiring performance spectacle. The elder Lohan tells Celebuzz that, “There is nothing more important to me than a parent standing behind their child and helping them fulfill their dreams,” clearly editing out the words "in court" after "their child."

Meanwhile, TMZ is reporting that D-Lo (not to be confused with former WWE semi-great D'Lo Brown) is going to participate in several episodes of VH1's "Hollywood Exes." The story clarifies that she'd merely be appearing sporadically as a full-time cast member's friend, not a series regular. And given that said cast includes the one-time wives of Jose Canseco, Eddie Murphy and Prince, it's both impossible and endlessly entertaining to imagine which less-than-better half she considers a bestie.

No word on a possible Lindsay cameo in either of the aforementioned projects, but we're sure her people will be in touch with Dina's if an opportunity arises.

"Hollywood Exes" will premiere on VH1 this summer. "DramaMamas" goes into production this summer for a TBD network.
 

NBC orders unusual hybrid from 'The Voice' co-creator

By Corey Levitan May 29, 2012 2:35PM
showbiznewsz.nl

At this point, can there be any gold left in the talent-show mine? According to Deadline, NBC isn't worried. It has just ordered a new model from John de Mol, co-creator of "The Voice."

Bing: More about "The Voice"

"The Winner Is" at least has a unique twist: Negotiating skills are just as important as singing skills. After each round, singers competing for a $1 million grand prize will be offered a cash deal in exchange for quitting. (Think of it as "Deal or No Record Deal.")

 

In the finale, eight singing acts can walk away with $100,000 each if they don't want to risk losing it all.

 

Also: What TV shows are returning next season?


According to Deadline, votes will be cast by a panel headed by a celebrity judge. (No casting decisions have been announced.)


"The Winner Is" is expected to premiere mid-season or next summer, possibly between "Voice" seasons.

 

Three guys self-implode as Emily's friends grill the pack

By MSN TV May 29, 2012 11:43AM

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By Diane Vadino
Special to MSN TV

 

It's week three of "The Bachelorette," and this is shaping up, against all odds, to be an entertaining outing: I literally don't remember a season when the bachelorette managed to keep her sanity together to such a degree, and to not dissolve into weeping and wailing or spasms of “He’s too good for me” insecurity. (Oh, Ashley—it all worked out in the end.) If Emily's resolve is due to her having a kid, the show should only cast single moms moving forward. I'm so relieved we're seeing echoes of that tough, flinty Emily we only see a couple times during Brad's season rather than how Brad seemed to view her: as a pretty girl with a hot body and not much to say.

 

Bing: More about Emily Maynard | 'The Bachelorette'

 

The first date card tonight goes to...Chris. We're still in Charlotte, and they're going to be climbing up the wall (er, of a mall? an office building?)—which gives Chris the opportunity for the evening's first adventure sport-slash-relationship metaphor: "Climbing the building is definitely like love—you have to start somewhere, and we're starting at the bottom." Honestly: Do they give these guys $50 for each one that makes it to air? At the top of the wall, Chris makes entirely too big a deal about whether or not he'll get to kiss Emily, before awkwardly high-fiving her: "I definitely want to kiss her, and I hope that opportunity will present itself, and we'll have a first kiss." If you thought the word "kiss" couldn't become totally creepy through overuse, you'd be proven wrong by Chris. "I really want to get that rose and maybe a first kiss," he adds. Emily asks Chris about his last relationship, and Chris tells her all about his high school girlfriend. Who he just broke up with. Which makes him.... "Twenty-five." Emily, literally, laughs. "It's a little bit of a red flag," she says. Chris still gets the rose, but there's an asterisk on the win, even as Luke Bryan sings and Chris (at long last) gets that first kiss. It's just as cringe-y as we have been led to believe: "Kissing Emily is the greatest thing I've ever experienced in my life," Chris says. Really, Chris? Really?

 

Next, we have this week's group date, which is at the park. Isn't it a relief to have these low-key dates? The genius (well, such as it is) of these dates isn't the helicopter/bungee jumping/etc., but in twisting the knife a little bit. Today, at the park, it's with the help of Emily's mom buddies, who have been recruited to evaluate the guys. It's maybe not as good as having children torment them (like last year, on Ben's theater date in Napa), but it's great in its own way. "Are you willing to get rid of your egg?" they ask the dude with the ostrich egg. "Have you ever cheated on a girl?" Wendy asks Wolf. "Don't lie." And: "Here comes Jersey!" they yell when Stevie comes in. They force Ryan to do push-ups. "You'd look good in a cape," Wendy says. "Or some Spandex." We see a bit of Sean assuring us that he won't be taking off his shirt today ... and then doing exactly that. Because the balance of power on this show—either this one or "Bachelor"—is so rarely with the lady, it is totally awesome watching Emily's mom friends grill the dudes. 

 

Photos: 'Bachelorette' stars: Where are they now? | This season's contestants

 

There's more to the date: Emily blows a whistle and a herd of children dashes onto the playground, sort of like a Greek goddess conjuring a storm. Emily and the women are taking notes about who handles the kids well (Jef, barefoot and on a slide, for example) and who doesn't. Speaking of fails, we have Ryan. They're talking about how pretty he is when someone makes a joke about Emily getting married—and getting fat. "As soon as I get married it's downhill," Emily says, jokingly, to Ryan. “Is that okay with you?" As a former pro football player, Ryan should be able to recognize this as a fumble: "Well, no, it's not," he says. "I think you need to be at your very best." It sounds like he's trying to make a stand against obesity in America, but it comes out more like he's just sort of a douche. "I would have a problem if you just got lazy," he says. "I would still love you—I just might not love on you as much." Emily: "He has the guts to tell me I better not get fat after we get married. It's not a good move." Later in the group date, Tony cries so much about missing his son that Emily takes pity on him and sends him home. Doug is nice to him about it ("He's five, dude—he has the attention span of a hummingbird"), and I think I have a crush on Jef. That dude is adorable. Sean gets the rose.

 

For tonight's second one-on-one date, Emily and Arie will be traveling by private plane ... to Dollywood. "For me, this is the happiest place on Earth," Emily says. In keeping with this season's theme of actual stars (see also: the Muppets), Dolly Parton shows up to serenade the couple. Emily and Arie dance: "This is like the best moment of my life," Emily says, and this is basically the first instance of someone saying that on this show and meaning it. "[Dolly] speaks her mind and wears costumes every day—she does not care. I wish I could be more like that." Dolly tells a totally star-struck Emily that true love is possible—and she knows because she's been married for 45 years. "I would not have known that this is their first date," Dolly proclaims. Over dinner, Arie admits that his ex-girlfriend, a mother of two, broke up with him because (a) she didn't want any more kids and (b) he reminded her too much of her ex-husband, another racer. He asks Emily if she could handle the travel schedule, and she is so enthusiastically yes-yes-yes about it that she literally almost jumps out of her seat. Unless he follows Ryan's crash and burn—Arie for the win?

 

That should be the end of the drama, but it's not—we still have time to spend with Kalon and Alessandro. The producers must have just insisted that Kalon hang out a bit more, because he's clearly revealed his true self to Emily: "Thanks to you, I had the week off," he says, miffed that he didn't get a date card. "I really took it personally when I didn't get a date this week." It's funny how rarely the guys complain about this—but it's a good thing they don't, since it's clearly a terrible tactic. But there's more to come: "I never had to share much in my life, so to share you is devastating," he says. Even more! How does he feel about becoming little Ricki's dad? "I always believed that my first child would be one of my own," he says. It's a miracle she doesn't ask him to leave immediately, especially when he drops an "I love it when you talk, but I wish you'd let me finish." Emily's take: "I do like tall, skinny and funny, but I don't like tall, skinny, and condescending."

 

Alessandro is not as lucky as Kalon. First—and we won't see the footage ’til the very end of the show—he apparently told Emily's friends that (a) he's cheated on a girlfriend and (b) he's had a one-night stand. Here's betting he's not the only one—but he was the only one dumb/honest enough to admit it. He's also dumb/honest enough to admit that he sees being a father as a "compromise." Emily is not at all into that; she wants her husband to feel like the luckiest guy on Earth. I know Emily's taken some flak for acting as if she's all that or that she's spoiled—but I say amen; it's about time this show featured a woman who believes she deserves the best. Neither Ashley nor Ali had quite so much moxie. "It's not like a language thing," Emily says, and ushers him to a limo. "While I appreciate his honesty, I’m not sure if he's someone I could see myself spending my life with."

 

With all these preemptive exits, everybody's getting a rose tonight but one—and that one is Jersey D.J. Stevie. How did he get on this show, anyway?

 

"The Bachelorette" airs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC.

 

Andy Cohen sparks a bit of 'Idol' runner-up animosity

By Kenny Herzog May 25, 2012 10:53AM
As it turns out, second-place "American Idol" finishers have long memories. And, if the picture of Adam Lambert above is any indication, superlative fashion sense. The current Billboard chart-topper and "Idol" Season 8 phenom stopped by Andy Cohen's unrehearsed chat fest "Watch What Happens Live" last night, and flaunted both his retro-cheetah aesthetic and obvious ambivalence toward "AI" Season 2 finalist Clay Aiken. 

Bing:
More on Adam Lambert|Clay Aiken|Andy Cohen|"Watch What Happens"|"American Idol"

While playing a self-explanatory little game called "Plead the Fifth," Cohen put Lambert on the spot by asking him to say three nice things about the recent "Celebrity Apprentice" runner-up. Adam, clearly not forgetting Aiken's 2009 critique of his "Ring of Fire" interpretation, merely smirked and confirmed he didn't need to invoke his fifth-amendment rights, but simply "can't think of any nice things."

We assume Clay's seen the below footage by now, and can only hope didn't turn to stone. 

"Watch What Happens Live" airs Sundays-Thursdays at 11 p.m. ET on Bravo.