‘We won’t take this any more!’: the reality TV stars battling to unionise
When Gemma Rose Barnes, 32, signed up to appear on Married at First Sight (Mafs) – a reality TV show that introduces couples for the first time on their wedding day – she felt apprehensive. She told the show’s producers that she wanted to meet the love of her life, and was worried she’d be married off to someone who hadn’t gone on the show for the same reason. “They told me that audiences now wanted to see genuine matches, so I had nothing to worry about,” says Barnes.
But what was sold to her as the chance to find The One quickly descended into a nightmare. Barnes says she made repeated complaints to the producers about her husband. When she asked to leave the show, she says she was coerced into staying – although Channel 4 claims that she was free to leave at any time. She says contestants were plied with alcohol, and that on one occasion producers snuck extra drinks to certain cast members before filming. Channel 4 denies this, claiming that alcohol consumption is at the discretion of individuals, “but it is monitored and limited by the production team”. Other contestants have spoken of being “smashed” during filming after sneaking in bottles of alcohol, as well as dramatic arguments being sparked by participants drinking on an empty stomach.
Another contestant from the series, George Roberts, was arrested after appearing on Mafs, following allegations from three of his ex-girlfriends that he emotionally abused them. Channel 4 said it had no knowledge of the abuse claims, which were made before Roberts appeared on the show. Roberts has denied all allegations of abusive behaviour.
“I just really believed them when they said they would protect us,” says Barnes. She believes the industry is in urgent need of change, and that a reality TV union for cast members and crew could be the answer. “I’m concerned about this lather-rinse-repeat attitude to reality TV,” she says. “There should be some sort of organisation outside these shows where this can be managed.”
She’s not the only one who feels this way. In the US, Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star Bethenny Frankel is leading the charge to establish a union for reality TV workers – last week gaining the support of actors’ union SagAftra. With the US actors’ and writers’ strikes seeing channels and streaming networks increasingly using unscripted programming to fill the gaps in their schedules, Frankel’s demands include a $5,000-an-episode base minimum pay for reality TV talent and a 10% raise each season for successful seasons, as well as talent being paid whenever their show re-airs on other platforms.
She has enlisted two high-profile attorneys, Bryan Freedman and Mark Geragos, to work alongside her in investigating the treatment of reality TV contestants. Freedman toldVarietylast month that he has been contacted by about 50 stars who are willing to join their fight. “Hollywood is on strike,” Frankel said in a video posted to Instagram. “Why isn’t reality TV on strike?”
Jeremy Hartwell, a former cast member of Love Is Blind, believes a union could solve the “power differential problem” between participants and the corporations behind these shows. Earlier this year, Hartwell, with another former star, Nick Thompson, set up the Unscripted Cast Advocacy Network (Ucan) – a charity providing reality TV cast members with legal and mental-health support. They were