The rollout for MTV’s new queer-inclusive reality show dismounted to a little one polarizing Beginning this week with the release of the first trailer.
Slated for release on January 20, The Real Friends of WeHo is touted as “an unfiltered and candid look” at six gay friends who “live, love and pursue their passions” in West Hollywood, where many members of Los Angeles LGBTQ living community housing.
The show’s cast includes celebrity stylist Brad Goreski, actor Curtis Hamilton, singer-dancer Todrick Hall, Buttah Skincare CEO Dorión Renaud, TV host and business owner Jaymes Vaughan, and digital entrepreneur Joey Zauzig.
“In a city and community where image and status are everything, they are ready to pull back the Hollywood curtain and reveal their most authentic selves not just to each other but to the world at large,” MTV said in a Thursday press release.
And as the title suggests, the show’s format borrows heavily from Bravo’s Real Housewives franchise, which enjoys a sizeable LGBTQ fanbase.
“If you like wives, don’t miss these new househusbands,” proclaims a narrator in the trailer, which can be seen below.
Vaughan, who is married to Mean Girls actor Jonathan Bennett, celebrated the release of the Real Friends of WeHo trailer with a quirky Instagram post.
“Wrong turn out of Palm Springs and landed here,” he wrote, referring to the home he and Bennett recently bought in Palm Springs, California.
Goreski echoed those sentiments.
“Daddy is coming to MTV! I can’t wait for you to meet my friends!” He wrote on Instagram, noting that his husband, Family Guy and Will & Grace screenwriter Gary Janetti would also be appearing on the show.
However, the trailer drew a lot of mockery on social media.
I was distracted from a national crisis, the House Vote, by another national crisis, The True Friends of WeHo.
– Alex Berg (@itsalexberg) January 5, 2023
You know it’s a bad idea for a TV show announcement to be put into perspective
— Chris. 🥺 (@chrispena_16) January 5, 2023
Weho’s true friends are what happens when you have gay people but no queer people on the network https://t.co/50J4qRLwQn
— Anthony Christian Ocampo 🇵🇭🏳️🌈 (@anthonyocampo) January 6, 2023
Others, however, seemed to have some enthusiasm for the series.
“Originally I was like, ‘What gay guy wants to see that,’ and then I reminded myself that stuff like this is for straight women and Real Housewives is for gay men,” one person said joked. “And I think that’s kind of beautiful.”
Added Royce-Jonesa reporter from Pennsylvania-based CBS affiliate KDKA-TV: “The drama better be messy!”