Vanderpump Rules Loses Major TV Award: A Look Back at the Journey
A detailed look at Vanderpump Rules' Emmy nomination and loss, and the impact of season 10 on the reality TV series.
The Emmy Nomination and Loss
Vanderpump Rules season 10 put the series back on the map and got the show nominated for an Emmy, but the series lost out on the award on the big night. After a massive breakout season, Vanderpump Rules was recognized by the Television Academy for its achievements in creating groundbreaking reality TV. While the series has been continuously breaking down boundaries in the reality TV space, it’s been an underdog of the Bravo lineup since its debut in 2013. Starring Lisa Vanderpump and the employees of her West Hollywood restaurant, SUR, Vanderpump Rules has documented the lives and relationships of some of its cast for over a decade.
Vanderpump Rules Season 11 cast with broken glass in front of them, against a purple background
Though Vanderpump Rules season 10 was nominated for two Emmy Awards, the series was snubbed during the Creative Arts Emmys ceremony on Sunday, January 7, 2024. According to Us Weekly, Welcome To Wrexham, a docuseries starring Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, took home the award for Outstanding Unstructured Reality program instead. Other nominees in this category included Selling Sunset, Indian Matchmaking, and RuPaul's Drag Race: Untucked. Stars of the series, including Ariana Madix, Katie Maloney, and Scheana Shay, were all present at the ceremony.
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The Impact of Season 10
Vanderpump Rules season 10 was meant to be a transitional season for the series in a very different way than it turned out, as the show had been dealing with low ratings and slow-moving stories for the last several years. With a large group of cast members getting fired after Vanderpump Rules season 8 finished airing, the series was trying to understand its next move and documenting Katie’s emotional divorce from her longtime partner Tom Schwartz when the biggest bombshell moment in the show’s history dropped. After nearly a decade together, Ariana found out that her long-term partner, Tom Sandoval, was cheating on her with their friend and co-star Raquel Leviss.
Suddenly, Vanderpump Rules season 10 sparked some of the most intense, raw drama that the reality TV series had ever seen. Breaking down every moment of Tom and Ariana’s final moments together and the destruction of the friend group that had carried the series, the show was able to get in-depth with the split in a way that kept viewers on the edge of their seat. With enormous ratings and cultural acclaim, the Vanderpump Rules season 10 finale and reunion were some of the most watched episodes of TV in 2023 and brought new life to the series, including two Emmy nominations.
With Vanderpump Rules season 11 on the horizon, the acclaim of even being nominated for Emmy Awards is massive for the Bravo spin-off series. Though Vanderpump Rules didn’t take home the awards, they were surrounded by intriguing reality TV series that pushed the envelope alongside them and made it a competitive category. With the show’s stars in attendance at the awards, despite their loss, Vanderpump Rules was able to represent themselves authentically at the 2023 Primetime Creative Arts Emmy Awards.
What's Next for Vanderpump Rules
Vanderpump Rules season 11 premieres January 30 at 8 p.m. EST on Bravo.
