UnREAL season 3 premiere date not coming until 2018; why the delay?
In a post on Twitter, series star Constance Zimmer (Quinn) confirmed that the show is not returning to Lifetime until early 2018. This comes after the series aired the first two seasons in the summer, and generated a certain degree of success with them. The first season in particular generated some tremendous critical acclaim and awards buzz; meanwhile, the second season was viewed as a little more controversial, with one of the big problems being the sentiment that the show tried to up the “crazy” across the board so much that it lost the original soul of the show at times.
Season 3 is going to be fundamentally different in that there will be a female lead for the first time on UnREAL, with Caitlin Fitzgerald of Masters of Sex fame being the “suitor” on the show-within-a-show Everlasting hoping to make a connection with some guy. Chaos is almost certainly going to ensue, as Rachel (Shiri Appleby) and the remainder of the crew do everything that they can in order to properly ensure that things go off the rails.
When UnREAL is firing on all cylinders, it is great fun and incredibly addictive. The issue that it has is trying to shake up the format given that much of the show limits it to a number of things that it can do. In some ways, it does have the same problem as either The Bachelor or The Bachelorette.
Why the delay?
It’s a good question, given that production-wise there is no reason why Lifetime couldn’t have just gone ahead and aired UnREAL this summer with filming on it done. Odds are, there is a thought that the show airing in January or February will lead to a larger pool of available viewers. With no Devious Maids this summer Lifetime is without any sort of worthy lead-in for UnREAL, and there are only so many people who would pick sitting down and watching a show live over going outside in the first place.
Hopefully, over the extended hiatus Lifetime takes the time to assess the future of the show, and announces a season 4 to potentially add to the fun. Also, wouldn’t it be nice to get more Freddie Stroma now that Time After Time is over?
What’s your reaction to the UnREAL season 3 filming delay? Be sure to share now in the attached comments! (Photo: Lifetime.)
TV Watcher 35
June 7, 2017 @ 8:03 pm
I think the season 3 delay is a desperate attempt to try and save the show. In my opinion there’s nothing left to save. That ship sunk with the season 2 finale. By the time season 3 premieres I’ll have probably forgotten about this show. The reason I started watching the show was to see a BTS look at what it’s like to make a reality dating show. The show started out great and then it went down hill once they started putting in soap opera and ripped from the headline plots. 3 show runners in 3 seasons is pretty troubling. I wish the show all the best. If I can remember it’s still on the air and does not conflict with any other shows I watch I may check it out. Just to see if they can get it back on track. My expectation levels are pretty low. They should just let u binge watch the season whenever your want.
Eric
June 7, 2017 @ 2:45 am
I don’t think the problem is Devious Maids. I know plenty of people who watched Devious Maids and did not watch UnREAL and vice versa. The ratings for UnREAL have been so bad the move can’t hurt. However I doubt more people are all of the sudden going to tune in because it’s cold outside. Being on Lifetime hurts the show. One of the problems the show will face is the season 3 promo. They’ve already done 2 promo events. By the time the show premiers I think most people would have forgotten about the show or not bother because of season 2. I am really curious to see if the show can get back to season 1 form. Season 2 was so bad they have a lot of work to do. I want more BTS making of a reality dating show and less soap. I don’t care about the rape plot or who Rachel will hook up with (unless it’s Adam or Quinn) or if the show will be held accountable for the firery crash. I guess time will tell? I am in for the long hall so I’ll be sticking around.