Welcome to the world of bad people making good TV.
The first black Bachelor? It happens tonight– but not on real-life ABC series The Bachelor. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D’s B. J Britt plays the the first black Bachelor on the fictional dating show Everlasting within Lifetime’s UnReal — filming its second season in Vancouver. Why a black Bachelor on the show-within-a-show? To help Everlasting producers Quinn King (Constance Zimmer) and Rachel Goldberg (Shiri Appleby) get out of the PR debacle that was their last season.
“Maybe I’m just sick of being a manipulative bitch.” — Rachel Goldberg.
“Have a good show everybody. The crazier the better.” – Quinn King.
UnReal producers Marti Noxon and Sarah Gertrude Shapiro (who worked for several seasons on The Bachelor) called it a no-brainer to cast a black bachelor on fictional Everlasting.
Also new to season 2: Ioan Gruffudd and Michael Rady.
Critical acclaim:
Sarah Gertrude Shaprio and stars Shiri Appleby and Constance Zimmer were invited to the Banff World Media Festival last June to talk about the show.
The American Film Institute named UnReal one of the Top 10 Television Programs of 2015.
FX chief Jon Landgraf — who famously said there is “Too Much TV” — gave a shoutout to two breakout shows in 2015: USA Network’s Mr. Robot and Lifetime’s UnReal.
At the Critics’ Choice Awards in January: UnReal won for Most Exciting New Series and Constance Zimmer for Best Supporting Actress in a Drama Series. UnReal was nominated for Best Drama Series as well but lost to Mr. Robot and Shiri Appleby was nominated for Best Actress in a Drama Series.
And UnReal is one of this year’s Peabody Award winners!
UnReal’s second season of ten episodes began filming March 7th in metro Vancouver and is expected to wrap June 16th (dates subject to change) in metro Vancouver, according to the DGC-BC production list.
UnReal season 2 premieres tonight on Lifetime in the U.S. and Canada.