With the eighth season of Selling Sunsetcoming any day now, it's clear that we're still completely obsessed with the glamorous lives - and the phenomenal outfits - of the women who work at The Oppenheim Group, selling ridiculously priced houses to stupidly wealthy clients, with a side helping of major drama and bitchiness. What's not to love?
But, as with all reality TV, sometimes we can't help but wonder just how real it is. Is Selling Sunset fake?
Speculation that the Netflix hit might be scripted was sparked during season five, after eagle-eyed viewers spotted a huge production error when boss Jason Oppenheim looked like he was speaking on the phone, only for it to be clear he wasn't on a call... Yikes.
The narrative around whether the real estate show is scripted worsened after the trailer for series seven.
Taking to Twitter, one fan said a lot of the drama felt 'forced' but they enjoyed it nonetheless, whilst another went so far as to call it 'painfully scripted', whilst a third said it was 'beyond obvious' that it wasn't totally authentic.
One series six storyline that attracted a lot of attention as to whether Selling Sunset is scripted or not was Nicole Young's drug test. You remember when the Selling Sunset realtor was accused by Chrishell Stauseof acting 'cracked out' and taking drugs, which led Nicole to later undergo a drug test?
Despite the initial interaction being branded as 'top tier reality TV,' others were not convinced that it was fully kosher.
'Some of Selling Sunset is so clearly scripted,' one lamented. 'Like Nicole’s drug test thing was so evidently scripted. It was so cringe.'
'Does anyone think that Netflix gave Nicole a storyline to follow?' someone else wondered.
And back in 2021, reality show superfan Chrissy Teigen raised our suspicions even further.
Chrissy Teigen - the model wife of singer John Legend - had done her own detective work and tweeted her hesitations about the show, saying that she wasn't sure whether the members of the cast were all the real deal.
'I look at LA real estate a lot and have never seen any of these people, neither have our agents who I have obsessively asked,' she tweeted.
And she was not the only one thinking the same thing, as another long-term LA real estate agent previously told the Mail on Sunday, 'The Oppenheim brothersare the real deal but none of us have ever come across the women they have working for them. It's clear these "girls", as they call them on the show, were hired to make the show sizzle.' Ouch.
The investigation by the Mail also points out how some agents - such as Chrishell and Amanza Smith - only got their estate agent licenses shortly before the show started filming in 2018. And it also reveals that some of the onscreen favourites aren't exactly pulling in the big bucks.
One estate agent told the paper, 'The figures seem to suggest the show may be relying on the women to add drama and beauty rather than cold, hard sales.' Eek.
It should be noted however that boss Jason Oppenheim was quick to shut this claim down, saying, 'All of the women who work out of the Oppenheim Group are licensed and successful real estate agents.'
But, perhaps the biggest indicator that the show could be staged was the news in 2021 that Mary and Romain's wedding at the end of season two was entirely faked, with the pair having actually been married for 19 months - yes, 19 months - prior to their on-screen nuptials.
According to American gossip website TMZ, the pair actually legally wed on March 9, 2018 - not October 12, 2019. That's a long time to keep a secret, guys!
However, the pair have insisted that they didn't feel 'properly married' until their (second) big day.
Speaking to the Metro, a rep for the couple confirmed, ‘Mary and Romain had a civil union a couple of months before the show began filming in June of 2018, but they chose not to tell any of their friends or family, as they were still trying to see if their relationship would work out in the long term. In their minds they weren’t properly married until the wedding that was filmed during the show.’
But, as the MailOnline notes, the certificate posted by TMZ appears to be a marriage certificate, and California doesn't offer civil unions...
Former Selling Sunset realtor Christine Quinn has also stirred the pot by suggesting that producers encouraged her bitter feud with Chrishell.
She spoke on ex-Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Brandi Glanville's Unfiltered podcast, where she revealed, 'From day one, obviously the producers had certain things in mind. They wanted us to clash obviously.'
Christine Quinn explained that she and Chrishell Stause were friendly at first, but this changed quickly as the producers wanted drama and interesting storylines. She said, 'At first, we didn’t [clash]. We got along great. We were friends. She was at my house. We were drinking, having a good time. I was getting to know her and then the storylines came into play.'
Later in her memoir, Christine said her reason for leaving the show in season five was entirely fabricated. She says, 'It wasn't a convenient storyline that Christine went off and started her own brokerage. That's not good TV.' So instead, producers decided to 'get creative' and pretend that Quinn offered one of her fellow realtor's Emma Hernan's clients $5,000 not to work with her.
'When I heard about it, I was just completely shocked,' the reality star added. 'I understand they have to make creative television, but no. There was no scene where I was supposed to show up at the office, and the clock is spinning and waiting. Like, nope. You guys didn't call me into the office that day. That's cute, though.'
It's worth nothing that Selling Sunset is masterminded by Adam Divello, who created The Hills - the first proper constructed reality TV show of all time - back in the Noughties. So, it's hardly surprising that we may be expected to take some of the scenes with a pinch of salt.
And whether you think it's real or not - there's no denying that Selling Sunset is one of the most entertaining shows out there at the moment.