The ladies of Basketball Wives have been working overtime to secure their infamy. And despite a lawsuit, celebrity complaints, sponsor boycott, fan uprising, a former castmember speaking out, and a very popular online petition – the show has been renewed for a fifth season! Shocked? Yeah, me too! No word on whether or not Jennifer Williams will be included in the cast!
All hope is not lost as the producers seem to be listening to fans and promising less chaos and violence in the upcoming season. Shaunie O’Neal faced criticism about the direction the show has been going in at this season’s reunion, which was taped this week. Shaunie swears she’s been campaigning for a less violent show all along and now the network is finally listening to her. Yeah, Right!
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR THE REST!
“I feel that all these ladies take responsibility for what their actions are…and after seeing ourselves this season, it definitely was a lot more bad than good,” Shaunie said. “I’ve really tried to preach the whole ‘Let’s get some balance’ and now I think my voice is resonating.” A clip of Shaunie speaking about the drama during the reunion is below.
Shed Media, which produces the controversial show (they also produce Real Housewives of New York, which was criticized for it’s negativity as well), released a statement promising a less ass kicking and more loving fifth season:
“Shed Media US is fully committed to telling the compelling stories of the Basketball Wives in a balanced way. Our producing partner Shaunie feels strongly about this, and we fully agree with this stance. We support her as she encourages the cast members to work out issues in a non-violent fashion. We look forward to working with her and the rest of the cast on conveying more balance in the next season.”
Also defending themselves and promising less vitriol is Vh1:
“Our viewers opinions always matter a great deal to us at VH1. Lately, there has been a lot of conversation about Basketball Wives, a series featuring strong, intelligent women with very passionate viewpoints which can sometimes escalate.
We at VH1 agree with and support Shaunie and the show producers’ ‘no excessive physical confrontations’ policy on the series moving forward. We are all committed to balancing the candid, bold excitement that the viewers have come to love in the series with storylines and representations they can be proud of. Shaunie has been a strong advocate for a more balanced approach to the show and we, along with our producing partners at Shed Media, are all in agreement about moving forward with that goal.”
Well, I guess we’ll have to wait and see what happens. I fear Basketball Wives has already lost so many viewers that they will need to significantly revamp the cast and the storylines. I, personally, feel Evelyn Lozada and Tami Roman are completely out of control. Tami has admitted that she exacerbates the drama because she needs to pay her bills, but it has become excessive.
Speaking of Tami, she has just settled the hair raising lawsuit filed against her Crème de la Crème beauty. The company claimed Tami had breached her endorsement contract with them by promoting her own hair line instead of theirs. The company wanted a judge to prevent footage of Tami sporting hair other than Crème de la Crème’s from airing.
Upon coming to their senses and realizing they definitely do not want Tami and her antics endorsing their products, Crème de la Crème decided to settle out of court for undisclosed terms. TMZ reports that Tami is no longer affiliated with the company, and that no footage will be cut from the show.
Whew – that was a close call! Now the “millions of fans” can let their hair down.
DO YOU BELIEVE BASKETBALL WIVES WILL CHANGE NEXT SEASON? WILL YOU GIVE THE SHOW ANOTHER CHANCE?
Get More: Music Videos, Free Music Videos
