The insane levels of drama on Netflix’s Selling Sunset are both why we love the show, and why its authenticity has come into question.
Based on the exclusive Oppenheim Group, run by Jason Oppenheim, the show follows both the professional and personal lives of the agency’s eccentric staff.
However, many fans of the show have speculated that the show is scripted and that the ‘agents’ are actually paid actors.
One of the more prominent sceptics has been Chrissy Teigen. Proclaiming her love for the show, she also took to Twitter to reveal that they might not be the big names they’re portrayed to be.
“I look at LA real estate a lot and have never seen any of these people lol either [sic] have our agents, who I have obsessively asked,” she wrote.
Oppenheim responded to her cryptic post by pointing out that they hadn’t heard of her agents, either.
“Chrissy, thanks for watching our show! Regarding your agent’s knowledge of members of my team, I respectfully don’t know him either although that doesn’t mean he isn’t successful and didn’t just sell you a stunning home in Weho (seriously, I love your new house).”
Suzi Dailey, an esteemed luxury realtor in California, also commented to Oprah Magazine that she had “never heard of them.” Not long after, another notable agent Sophia Weeks added, “Honestly, I’d think you were lying to me if you told me that they weren’t actors.”
Even some of the show’s cast have admitted that it’s not as organic as producers would like us to think. One of the leading agents Chrishell Stause said on her Instagram Stories that, “[The crew] can sometimes nudge us to address things but what we say is all us.”
But now, to finally quash all those pesky rumours, Oppenheim released a statement on the matter and even brought out the receipts.
“Mary, Heather, Maya, and Christine were licensed and successful real estate agents at The Oppenheim Group many years prior to filming our show,” his statement read. “Amanza worked with us as a designer, and has been a close friend of Mary’s and mine for many years. Chrishell was a practising agent at another brokerage, many years previous to filming Selling Sunset. As a licensed agent, Davina had transacted many deals before joining the team in 2018. Any insinuation that the agents on our show are not experienced, successful, or licensed, evidences a complete disregard for the facts. Even a superficial investigation would identify previous team photos, hundreds of millions in transacted sales, and more than 50 years of combined licensed real estate experience from these agents.”
He then provided actual screenshots of each agent’s California real estate licences. The documents also show when exactly each agent joined the agency.
What should be noted is that the show was created by the same people who brought us the infamous ‘reality’ series The Hills. And just like The Hills, while we’re not sure Selling Sunset is all real, we sure do love to watch.
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