Celebrity Extra: UnREAL
By Dana Jackson
Q: Whatever happened to the TV show "UnREAL," which was a parody of "The Bachelor"? I thought it was really good, and not overly silly. Is it coming back? -- H.T.
A: "UnREAL" originally aired on the Lifetime network for three seasons before concluding with a short fourth and final season on Hulu. It starred Shiri Appleby ("Roswell") as a young producer of a "Bachelor"-style reality show titled "Everlasting." She was directed by an even more unscrupulous executive producer behind the monitors, played by Constance Zimmer.
"UnREAL" was based on the short film "Sequin Raze," which was directed by Sarah Gertrude Shapiro, who once was a field producer on ABC's "The Bachelor." "UnREAL" ended up winning a Peabody Award "for illustrating how masterfully parody can work when it shines its light fearlessly and for smartly blending the dichotomy between high and low culture."
(From left) Constance Zimmer, Shiri Appleby and Craig Bierko ("UnREAL"). Photo Credit: Courtesy of A+E Studios
Hulu didn't order any new episodes after the fourth season in 2018, and a return doesn't seem to be in the works. Appleby recently had a role in the Reese Witherspoon rom-com "Your Place Or Mine," but has been more busy directing than acting, having recently directed several episodes of the sitcoms "Young Sheldon" and "Grown-ish." Zimmer, too, had found herself drawn to leadership positions behind the lens. She's returning to Lifetime to direct her first feature-length film, "Boy in the Walls." She also was a regular on the ABC series "Big Sky," a show that remains in limbo as it hasn't been canceled or renewed.
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Q: Is the police drama "The Rookie" with Nathan Fillion connected in any way to "The Recruit"? My friend told me they were created by the same person. -- A.P.
A: It's true that producer Alexi Hawley created both ABC's "The Rookie" and Netflix's "The Recruit," but they are not a shared "universe," according to PopCultureReferences.com. "The Recruit" stars Noah Centineo as an attorney who finds himself in the midst of some international drama involving the CIA, while "The Rookie" stars Nathan Fillion ("Castle") as a member of the LAPD.
"The Rookie" does, however, have a spinoff series on ABC titled "The Rookie: Feds," which stars Niecy Nash-Betts ("Dahmer -- Monster: The Jeffrey Dahmer Story"). It stands a good chance of lasting as long as its predecessor, which was recently renewed for a sixth season.
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Q: Is the beautiful New York City apartment building in the series "Only Murders in the Building" a real place, or is it a set? -- C.C.
A: It's a combination of both. What is known as the Arconia on the series is a real residential building in Manhattan, located at 86th and Broadway, but it's called the Belnord. It earned recognition when it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places back in 1980, and currently, the apartments -- which are being converted into condos -- cost as high as $11 million. The Belnord is only used for exterior shots on the Hulu series, while the inside scenes where Steve Martin, Martin Short and Selena Gomez's characters live are actually filmed on a set in the Bronx.
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