Season 11 of Vanderpump Rules has been anything but perfect. The season premiered with mixed reviews from longtime fans and has since isolated a lot of them by trying to redeem Tom Sandoval in the wake of his cheating scandal. As the show heads into the final episode of the season next week, I’m starting to think that this will be the last time we catch up with the former SUR staff, and honestly, I’d be happy about it.
Unlike The Real Housewives franchise, which Vanderpump Rules is considered a spin-off of, the hit Bravo series revolved around the young staff members at Lisa Vanderpump’s SUR Restaurant and Lounge in West Hollywood, California. At the time, the cast was in their twenties, working bartending and serving jobs while dreaming about making it in show business and dealing with relationship drama as they all seemingly dated each other.
Since then, the show has grown and evolved alongside its cast. Though many of them are now successful business owners and parents, the drama has only gotten worse. Instead of throwing drinks at each other in the ally of SUR only to make up days later, they’re caught up in messy business partnerships, divorces between cast members, and perhaps the cheating scandal of the decade.
It used to be fun watching the drama unfold while trying to guess who this season’s Vanderpump Rules villain would be, but now that a majority of the cast is well into adulthood, it all feels a bit childish. The housewives might be able to get away with it, but fans like myself are getting tired of the same old drama being brought up over and over again. Not to mention, the original premise of the show no longer makes sense since none of them work at SUR, nor are they big names in show business aside from appearing on the reality show.
Reality stars becoming too big to continue appearing on a show in the same capacity is the catch-22 of the genre. However, instead of reinventing itself or bringing in a new group of servers and waiters to carry on the legacy, Vanderpump Rules has continued to focus on the same core group for over a decade. Honestly, had it not been for the cheating scandal that rocked Season 10, I think that would have been the show’s last season.
Now, I’ve been a fan of reality TV long enough to know that an emotional montage moment usually means things are ending. That fact, coupled with Ariana Madix’s taking over Sarah Hyland's hosting duties on Love Island, USA, and the news that the series would not be filming this summer as it has for the last decade, has me pretty convinced that it's not coming back. Some fans may disagree, but I do think it’s time we say goodbye to this group.
They’ve exhausted all storylines that make sense for the show. And judging by their individual social media accounts, it doesn’t seem like most of the cast are actually on speaking terms right now. Not to mention, Bravo’s new show The Valley would be the perfect home for some of the cast who are looking to continue their career in reality TV — like Lala Kent and Scheana Shay, who appeared to use this season as their audition for the new show.
With a hiatus happening and the cast focusing on other projects, the only way I see the show coming back is if they totally reboot it like Bravo did with The Real Housewives of New York City by bringing on an entirely new cast. They could even move the show to Las Vegas and follow the employees at one of Vanderpump’s many locations there.
While we wait for official word on the status of Vanderpump Rules, fans can relive the drama by streaming all eleven seasons with a Peacock subscription. Don’t forget to catch the finale episode of the three-part reunion, which airs on the 2024 TV schedule on Tuesday, May 28th at 8 PM on Bravo. And if you’re really desperate for more drama, check out the Real Housewives alum’s new show Vanderpump Villa on Hulu.
