Frances Berwick, Chairman, Bravo & Peacock Unscripted, has been there from the start of The Real Housewives franchise, which is celebrating 20 years with Season 20 of the show that started it all, The Real Housewives of Orange County.
At the premiere of RHOC Season 20, Berwick shared her thoughts on being part of such a momentous event
“Just feels incredibly gratifying and fun and joyous,” she told Deadline. “The fact that it’s still making people really happy to watch the show, that they love being part of this Real Housewives community, it just makes you feel good.”
For Berwick, going back to 2006, when RHOC originally premiered on Bravo, they knew they had produced something special after the first season ended.
“The viewership had gone up with every episode,” she recalled. “We were like, ‘Oh my God… we’re going to do a Season 2.’ We had not thought that we would be franchising it, and it was only really as we started to see other casts like ‘Manhattan Moms’ that we thought this could be a Real Housewives show too. They don’t have to be housewives. This is sort of like a modern interpretation of what a Real Housewife is.”
“Manhattan Moms” would eventually be known as The Real Housewives of New York City, and Berwick recalled the debate on whether extending The Real Housewives franchise as if the show wasn’t good, “It could damage The Real Housewives of Orange County.
“We were quite thoughtful about it, but then it felt like this could be a good thing,” she added. “And since Orange County had resonated, perhaps this was a good way to sort of attract a different audience rather than the same audience and expand it.”
Right after RHONY, Berwick said that “around the same time we saw the cast for Atlanta” and they “fell in love with them,” adding, “Ultimately, it was all about the cast. There were so many women who had amazing stories to tell who had these incredible bonds and friendships and were going through all sorts of life challenges and dealing with different things in their life. It just felt like a natural extension.”
The Real Housewives franchise is not going anywhere anytime soon. Earlier this year, Bravo extended the franchise once again with The Real Housewives of Rhode Island, which quickly earned a second season following strong viewership. As for the OG of the franchise, Berwick says, “When you see Season 20, you’ll feel like you know this can last a while because it’s such a combination of… We have a new addition to the cast with Carmela Garcia, and we have Vicki [Gunvalson], who is in Season 1, and then many of the others who’ve joined us in between, and there are still fresh stories and fresh relationships.”
While speaking with Berwick, we couldn’t let her go before getting some insight on the future of the Summer House spinoff, In the City.
“Usually we wait till we finish the season,” Berwick said on the possibility of a Season 2 renewal for In the City. “We’re not that far off from the end of the season, and we’ve got the Watch What Happens Live reunions, so we’re excited.”
Watch Frances Berwick talk Real Housewives in the video below.
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