Has reality TV come to a crossroads? Until last week, Netflix’s dating contest, Love is Blind, wouldn’t have stood out in the pantheon of reality shows. What was supposed to be a light-hearted game show, wrapping up Season 7, has spiraled wildly out of control, as lawsuits piled up. The entertainment industry will be sorting out the details for years. It’s about time.
Sympathetic to the accounts of several disgruntled former guests on Love is Blind, the US National Labor Relations Board just suggested relabeling guests appearing on the show Love is Blind from “participant” to “employee.” That provides the right to unionize and seek higher pay. It also robs reality TV of its attractiveness to execs. This breakthrough is largely due to two contestants who filed a complaint with the NLRB, Renee Poche and Nick Thompson. They are hardly the only ones to cry foul. Would you believe the most scandalous, authentic drama in reality TV are the parts edited out?
The nature of the show’s content nudges people into very intimate situations for the sake of whipping up tantalizing narratives and relationships. This meticulously-crafted image does not reflect the true experience that participants lived through, if the lawsuits are factual. This might result in fewer new reality shows. The only person with the power to nullify the ruling is a former reality TV star from 2009 with an orange spray tan … no, not Snooki.

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Release Date

February 13, 2020

Main Genre

Reality

Cast

Nick Lachey
, Vanessa Lachey
, Micah Lussier
, Chelsea Griffin
, Tiffany Pennywell
, Zack Goytowski
, Brett Brown
, Kwame Appiah
, Alexa Alfia
, Brennon Lemieux
, Colleen Reed
, Matt Bolton
, Bartise Bowden
, Bliss Poureetezadi
, Paul Peden
, Cole Barnett
, Zanab Jaffrey
, Raven Ross
, Nancy Rodriguez
, SK Alagbada
, Deepti Vempati
, Danielle Ruhl
, Mallory Zapata
, Natalie Lee
, Nick Thompson
, Iyanna McNeely
, Jarrette Jones

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It’s All Fun and Games Until the Government Steps in

Hitting airwaves in 2020, Love is Blind is by no means the most disliked reality program, renewed several times. Thanks to former contestants on that show, more specifically Poche and Thompson, their status could soon be adjusted, along with their legal protection and benefits. They brought their grievances in front of the NLRB this year, citing manipulative treatment and psychological duress. Note that Netflix is not named in the complaint or found guilty of any criminal wrongdoing; only the production companies, Delirium TV and Kinetic Content, were explicitly singled out by this particular case, per The New York Times. In that article, Poche’s lawyer, Bryan Freedman, explained that his client was bullied by producers, calling out the whole industry:

“Cast members are stripped of fundamental rights, gagged from speaking out, denied legal recourse, paid virtually nothing, subjected to the ever-present threat of ruinous liquidated damages and prevented from working elsewhere…”

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Some of these personalities and scenes are shelved entirely for legal reasons, never airing. Love is Blind, incidentally, has been a magnet for such controversies. People Magazine reported on a case of false imprisonment and psychological abuse alleged by a former contestant on Season 5, Tran Dang. Her segment, like Poches’, was canned in the final edit, most likely due to their lawyers’ intervention.
Reality TV’s Dirtiest Secret

Whereas sitcoms suffer from an overhaul and need to cling to expensive actors to keep a show afloat, reality TV banks on histrionics and dysfunction, dumping anyone who doesn’t play ball. USA Today goes into further details, stating that the Love is Blind “contracts also bar participants from making any derogatory statements about the production companies, network, or show in the immediate aftermath, and all publicity is at the production’s discretion, according to the complaint.” This means non-disclosure agreements are designed to prevent contestants from revealing spoilers but also stymie whistle-blowers. It backfired.

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Which Love is Blind Couples Are Still Together In 2024?

Love is Blind has delivered its share of drama, but also successful marriages, too, and even a few upcoming babies.

Contestants on that show, now simply deemed “employees,” will be able to pursue better pay and eliminate unethical contracts packed with onerous stipulations, including a $50,000 penalty for leaving the show early for those with cold feet. If you ever wondered what drove people to stick around and perform degrading acts on reality shows, now you know. Thus explaining some of the most awkward moments in TV history.
The Untenable Financial Reality Behind the Shows We Love to Hate

Robbed of a steady supply of shows with low overhead and willing guests working for pathetic wages, there isn’t any reason to think that networks will bother to produce them in large numbers anymore. We don’t know yet what this means for other reality shows should the NLRB’s labeling go unchallenged, but rest assured, it won’t be good for the bottom line. If all reality TV show contestants are afforded this legal classification (the ruling is only advisory, not legally binding), will it signal an extinction-level event for the genre? Probably not, at least not in the short term. For one thing, the lawyers or lobbyists will probably try to quash the decision in any way possible. Also, there is the distinct possibility that the incoming US President and former Apprentice host, Donald Trump, could pressure the board to reverse or water down the ruling.
Season 8 of Love is Blind has been confirmed. What, if any, safeguards have been implemented haven’t been disclosed. The show’s future is still in jeopardy. Don’t worry; you can still ogle strangers making fools of themselves on social media should you require a daily fix of people making dubious life choices. Love is Blind is streaming on Netflix.