‘Vanderpump Rules’ Producer Reacts to Fans’ Passionate Support of Ariana Madix (2024)

It felt like the entire Vanderpump Rules fandom rallied behind Ariana Madix during Scandoval. The cast was also involved with Lala Kent comparing Tom Sandoval to her ex, Randall Emmett. Scheana Shay was angry at Sandoval for ruining multiple friendships and Rachel "Raquel"Leviss put a restraining order on her, so she had to leave the set. Multiple brands and opportunities showed that it was good business sense to get on the Ariana support train.

However, there was a change in most of the cast members and some fans for Season 11. Kent and Shay had negative things to say about Madix in the after-show and in their confessionals, and some fans agreed with them. Other fans were upset about this and made that clear. The tension grew so great that Lala Kent insulted them on her podcast. Now the Vanderpump Rules showrunner has spoken up about the passionate supporters.

'Vanderpump Rules' Showrunner Sees Passionate Fans as a Good Thing

If you're a fan of the show, then you probably couldn't escape people's opinions about the cast turning on Madix. Showrunner Alex Baskin gave his reaction to the situation to The Hollywood Reporter, saying:

"The audience also shifted a little over the course of the season. At first, they were frustrated that we weren’t just moving on from this, and by the end they were more understanding of where Ariana [Madix] and Katie [Maloney] were coming from. But I think the passion that the audience has is a testament to the show and the investment this group of people still has 11 years in."

Filming the beginning of the season took place three months after the affair was revealed. The wounds were fresh, but to some fans watching the fallout a year later felt tedious. Either way, it sounds like the showrunner is happy that fans are still talking about the Bravo show after all this time. He also addressed the different perspectives on how to move forward between cast members. Should a cast member film without interacting with another one because that's her reality? Or do they have to talk for the sake of the show?

"A lot of them had their own experience with moving on from something that was really difficult," he said. "And I say that in the context of their lives and the show because they are one and the same with this group. So I think that’s why they struggled with this. And I also think the intensity of the audience’s reaction was difficult."

Brock Davies has previously acknowledged Shay was getting a lot of hate comments online and asked fans to "love on her" on Instagram. Kent claimed she was not going to talk about Vanderpump Rules again until the final part of the reunion on her podcast, Give Them Lala. However, she continued to talk about it as she sold things on Amazon. On her podcast, she claimed she loved that fans were riled up. But she got upset once people were criticizing her as a mother.

You can catch up on Vanderpump Rules on Peaco*ck.

Vanderpump Rules

TV-14

Reality TV

Best known as one of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, Lisa Vanderpump opens the salacious kitchen doors of her exclusive Hollywood restaurant and lounge, SUR.

Release Date

January 7, 2013

Cast

Lisa Vanderpump , Katie Maloney , Scheana Shay , Tom Sandoval

Main Genre

Reality TV

Seasons

10

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