Bravo is going ahead with the September 5th premiere of The Real Houswives of Beverly Hills but will add an introduction addressing the suicide of Russell Armstrong and air suicide prevention PSAs during the premiere. Episodes that were filmed prior to the reality show cast member’s suicide will, coincidentally, air during Suicide Prevention Week.
Bravo had already decided to re-edit the existing episodes in the wake of Armstrong’s suicide to avoid exploiting the difficult marriage of Russell and wife Taylor Armstrong, and today EW.com reported the network will go even further to ensure the tragedy is taken seriously.
The cast has filmed an introduction to the new season in which they will address Armstrong’s suicide, and then the premiere will go ahead as planned--edited for content of course. The episode will have suicide prevention messages interspersed throught the airing.
Armstrong’s August 16th suicide placed a glaring spotlight on the damage reality television cameras can do to people; although no one can put the blame solely on the shoulders of the cameras, it has been reported that before his suicide Armstrong spoke to his mother about the upcoming season, saying he expected to be “crucified” on camera.
Even if we are to believe that Bravo’s heart is the right place, a PSA or two is not likely to make much of a difference, and certainly a half-hearted “don’t do it” is unlikely to have made a difference for Armstrong himself. Still, there’s no doubt the gesture was necessary. For Bravo to go ahead with Real Housewives as if nothing had happened would undoubtedly be worse. It remains to be seen just how the edits to existing episodes will portray Armstrong; after all, what point is there in devoting the entire premiere to addressing the suicide and then pretending it never happened in the actual show?
