Andy Cohen Explains ‘Vanderpump Rules’ Summer Pause on Season 12 Production

Tatiana Tenreyro
·3 min read
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Vanderpump Rules is changing its production schedule, opting to not film season 12 this summer.

TMZ first reported that unlike previous seasons of the hit Bravo reality series, which typically begin production in May and film throughout the summer, Vanderpump Rules‘ upcoming season won’t begin taping until later.

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Sources told the publication that the network felt the cast deserved a break to “let their lives breathe a bit in the wake of Scandoval,” with hopes of some fresh drama that doesn’t involve the Tom Sandoval-sparked scandal from the spring of 2023. An additional factor in the decision to not film this summer is Ariana Madix’s stint as host of Love Island USA, as she will be filming in Fiji for a few months.

Though TMZ didn’t share when production is expected to pick up for season 12, it noted that it won’t be a full-year hiatus.

Bravo has not commented on when cameras will pick back up. But during a recent episode of Sirius XM’s Andy Cohen Live, the Bravo personality weighed in on the hit show’s schedule change. It must be noted, however, that Cohen is not directly involved in the series; he does not hold an executive producer title for the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills spinoff series.

“We used to do this all the time with the Housewives,” said the Watch What Happens Live host and EP of the Real Housewives franchise when explaining that it’s not uncommon for filming to pause for the summer for Bravo shows. “We would say, ‘You know what? Let’s put cameras for four or five months and come back to them and they will have lived their lives, things will be different.'”

The currently airing 11th season picked up soon after season 10 ended in order to capture the immediate Scandoval fallout. “I was talking to Ariana [Madix] about this on the after show last night. I was saying, people do forget, especially as it relates to Ariana, who was the one cheated on,” Cohen added. “People forget that we picked up cameras three months after she found out about that affair [with Sandoval and former co-star Rachel Leviss], so that’s why she’s still in the violently angry stage and you can understand that.”

He continued, “Sometimes you want to pick cameras right up quickly, because there’s stuff happening and you want to get in there right away. And sometimes you do want people to live their lives and see how things develop and you know, so, I think it’s a very good idea.”

When the Vanderpump Rules cast returns for season 12, fans will get to see some major developments, including Madix and Katie Maloney’s sandwich shop Something About Her finally being up and running, as it is scheduled to open on May 22. And Lala Kent is expected to give birth to her second child in early September.

Fans will also be able to see if the Toms’ (Schwartz and Sandoval) respective new relationships will survive. Tom Sandoval started dating model Victoria Lee Robinson at the beginning of the year, marking his first relationship post-Scandoval. Meanwhile, Tom Schwartz is currently dating 23-year-old TikToker Sophia Skoro.

Vanderpump Rules boss and EP Lisa Vanderpump, meanwhile, also has a second season of Hulu’s Vanderpump Villa in the works.

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