Shannen Says

Shannen Says

A man is wrappng his arm around a woman. The words "Shannen Says." are shown against a pale background.

Title card
Genre Reality documentary
Starring
Composer(s)
  • Jeff Leauby
  • Barak Shpiez
  • Michael John Mollo
Country of origin United States
Original language(s) English
No. of seasons 1
No. of episodes 8 (list of episodes)
Production
Executive producer(s)
  • Kathleen Farrell
  • Tom Forman
  • Russell Heldt
  • Shannen Doherty
  • Kurt Iswarienko
Running time 42–43 minutes[1]
Production company(s)
Distributor WE tv
Release
Original network WE tv
Picture format 1080i (16:9 HDTV)
Audio format Stereo
Original release April 10 (2012-04-10) – May 13, 2012 (2012-05-13)
External links
Official website

Shannen Says is an eight-episode American reality television series which was broadcast on WE tv from April 10 to May 13, 2012. It focused on preparations for the wedding of actress Shannen Doherty and photographer Kurt Iswarienko, with help from celebrity-wedding planner David Tutera. The series' premise originated from a discussion between Doherty and Iswarienko about providing a look into their lives and document the stress on a couple of planning their wedding. The series' executive producers included Doherty, Iswarienko, Kathleen Farrell, Tom Forman, and Russell Heldt. It was filmed in Malibu, California over a seven-week period, and was produced by RelativityREAL and Doherty's production company No Apologies Productions. The series was released on the iTunes Store and Amazon Video under the title Shannen Says, Season 1, but was not made available on DVD or Blu-ray.

Shannen Says had low ratings, ranking below most other programs on its broadcast night. Doherty said that it was intended as a one-off, with no plans for a second season. Before its premiere, the series was compared to reality shows by Tori Spelling and Kim Kardashian. The show received mixed responses from television critics, who disagreed over its use of drama. Doherty was well-received by critics, who called her a good match for reality television. Her mother, Rosa, also received positive attention from fans on Twitter.

Production

Conception and development

On July 20, 2011, it was announced that Doherty and Iswarienko would star in a then-untitled project on WE tv which executive producers said would showcasing Doherty from an "unfiltered, honest, and vulnerable" perspective.[2] The show's working title was The Shannen Doherty Project. WE tv senior vice president John Miller called it a perfect fit for the network: "It's what WE tv does best – present stories that showcase the wild ride of modern-day life from a woman's perspective".[3] According to a press release, the series would center on Doherty "tak[ing] viewers on the hilariously bumpy ride of planning her wedding".[4] It tracks the events leading up to Doherty's third wedding, following her two previous marriages with American actor Ashley Hamilton and American poker player Rick Salomon that ended in 1994 and 2003 respectively.[5] It would also cover the renovation of her home in Malibu, California.[6] Its promotion emphasized that the show would focus on conflict between Doherty and Iswarienko,[4][7] and it was cited as an example of how WE tv was "carving out a place among women with celeb-driven reality series".[8]

The idea of a reality series originated when Doherty and Iswarienko were interested in documenting the weeks leading up to their wedding in a filming and production style similar to Anthony Bourdain: No Reservations and Deadliest Catch.[9] Doherty had previously worked on reality television, hosting Scare Tactics and Breaking Up with Shannen Doherty, and participating on the tenth season of Dancing with the Stars.[10][11] She called the project her "pact" with Iswarienko to "sort of chronicle this time in our lives and let future brides and future grooms know that [it's] not just you and that goes through the stress".[12] According to Doherty, it was a "totally different thing" and a way to celebrate her third marriage: "Can you bring all of those qualities to reality TV? Can you be that brutally honest, that completely raw, but with the quality of those two shows where you do use different cameras and you do want it to look spectacular?"[13] Doherty planned to develop the idea with her own production company, originally partnering with an unidentified television network. However, the series was picked up by WE tv when Doherty thought that the previous network was making the material "train wrecky".[9] Miller said that he approved the series after seeing its pitch, and he found Doherty an "insanely compelling" person to watch on reality television.[6]

Doherty watched former Beverly Hills, 90210 co-star Tori Spelling's reality show about her relationship with husband Dean McDermott and Keeping Up with the Kardashians to prepare for filming.[12] In a New York Daily News interview, she resisted comparisons to Kim Kardashian's publicized wedding and divorce from basketball player Kris Humphries: "I'm not Kim Kardashian!"[14] Doherty described the series as a documentary, rather than a reality show, saying that she was "not a reality star" and was "still an actor". She called the project "the best wedding video in the world".[15] Before its premiere, Barry Walsh of Realscrean.com described it as a docuseries.[16] The show received additional publicity when Spelling offered to plan Doherty's wedding during an interview with Entertainment Tonight Canada: "I'll do the wedding, I could probably comment on the wedding she'd want 20 years ago, but that wouldn't make any sense."[17][18]

Filming and cast

Doherty and Iswarienko purchased a RED camera to film the series. According to Doherty, they decided to purchase the camera equipment themselves to make the show "a cut above the rest as far as our crew and how it looks". She described the filming technique as allowing for a more-authentic look into her life: "It had to be honest, it had to be truthful, and it had to look fantastic".[9] Asked by an interviewer about rumors that she was a "bridezilla", Doherty said that the series would show all aspects of her preparation for the wedding and was meant to "bar[e] the good, the bad and the ugly”.[13] Its opening ("Everyone thinks they know you") was described by Doherty as another way to show her real life, in contrast with her reputation for being difficult.[19]

The series was filmed over a seven-week period[12] at the couple's home in Malibu and nearby locations.[20] Production began in August 2011, with an original release date scheduled for January 2012.[21] The title was set as Shannen Says before its premiere,[1] and the wedding took place and was filmed on October 15, 2011.[22] The series was produced by Doherty's company, No Apologies Production.[19] Although she was initially hesitant about the lack of privacy during filming,[13] she felt more comfortable when the bedroom was set as off-limits for the show.[9] David Tutera, a wedding planner and host of My Fair Wedding with David Tutera, acted as Doherty's event planner.[23] The series also featured Doherty's friends, Roxana Zal, Tim Bitici, and Roger Castillo,[24] and her mother, Rosa.[25] According to Doherty, her mother was well-received by fans on Twitter: "[She] w[as] just [her]self and [she] didn’t sit there with a hair and makeup team for two hours, [she] didn’t have a stylist. [She] w[as] just a mom".[12]

Episodes

No.TitleOriginal air dateU.S. viewers
(millions)
1"Rules of Engagement"April 10, 2012 (2012-04-10)0.172[26]
Doherty and Iswarienko begin to plan their wedding with the help of celebrity-event planner David Tutera.
2"Location, Location, Location"April 17, 2012 (2012-04-17)—
Doherty and Tutera disagree over the location for the wedding. With Iswarienko's help, Doherty agrees to baby-sit her manager's son to determine if she is ready to have children.
3"Shannen's Ready, Is Kurt?"April 29, 2012 (2012-04-29)0.142[27]
After agreeing with Tutera on a venue for the wedding, Doherty searches for a wedding dress and decides to wear three dresses during the ceremony.
4"When It Comes to Kurt's Career, He's Single"April 29, 2012 (2012-04-29)0.123[27]
Iswarienko accepts two jobs overseas, and leaves without consulting Doherty. She wonders if the wedding will still take place, since he never informed her about his career choices.
5"A Wedding in Prague-ress"May 6, 2012 (2012-05-06)0.162[28]
Tutera attempts to further arrange the wedding, but Doherty refuses to proceed without Iswarienko's presence and input.
6"Dress Mess"May 6, 2012 (2012-05-06)0.146[28]
After returning from a trip to Prague to discuss her future with Iswarienko, Doherty searches for vendors for the wedding. When her wedding dresses are delivered, she is disappointed and angry that they do not meet her expectations.
7"The Wedding Gift"May 13, 2012 (2012-05-13)—
Iswarienko attempts to find the perfect wedding present for Doherty, as final preparations are made for the wedding.
8"The Wedding"May 13, 2012 (2012-05-13)—
Doherty and Iswarienko are married, with the couple exchanging handwritten vows.

Broadcast history and release

A preview, which Perez Hilton called "fantastic", was released before the show's debut.[29] Shannen Says premiered on April 10, 2012 in the United States on WE tv at 10:00-9:00 pm Eastern and Pacific, after it was initially scheduled for April 3.[30] The second episode aired on Tuesday night in the same time slot, and two episodes were aired every Sunday night in the same time slot until the end of the season.[31] The series was commercially unsuccessful. Its premiere was watched by a total of 172,000 people, ranking below the debut of Dance Moms: Miami.[26] The rest of the episodes also had low ratings, scoring below most of the programs in its time slot.[27][28] It was broadcast internationally on WE tv Asia.[30] Senior vice president and general manager of AMC and Sundance Channel Global Harold Gronenthal said the decision to broadcast Shannen Says, The Slap, Hell on Wheels, and Breaking Bad, indicated that network executives were "committed to providing a diverse line-up of high quality programming to serve audiences".[16][32]

Doherty later said that she did not intend to pursue a second season, describing the series as a "one-off" created to capture the "time in a couple’s life where they get married and how stressful it can be". To a suggestion of a second-season storyline of a pregnancy and child, Doherty said: "Oh god — no, no, no, no!"[12] The series ended on May 12, 2012;[1] a writer from the Futon Critic reported that it was cancelled after being "on hiatus for longer than 12 months – without any news about its future".[4] The series was released on the iTunes Store on April 10, 2012, as Shannen Says, Season 1.[1] All episodes have been available from Amazon Video since 2012.[25] It has not been made available on Blu-ray or DVD.[33]

Critical reception

Critical response to Shannen Says was mixed following its premiere. A reviewer from Life & Style magazine gave the series three stars out of four, calling it "very entertaining",[34] and a writer from Celebuzz described it as "hilarious, sweet and serious all at the same time".[35] HitFix's Geoff Berkshire praised the show for being "look[ing] great and mov[ing] swiftly from one drama to the next", and called Doherty "equal doses crazy and amusing".[20] Alternatively, SouthCoastToday.com's Kevin McDonough criticized the show for attempting "to compensate for the lack of drama in Doherty's life with the manic production of a reality TV-sized wedding".[36]

Doherty was widely praised by television critics when the series first aired. Reviewing the premiere, a contributor to The Huffington Post wrote that Doherty was "every bit the bad girl fans have been loving to hate to love for the past twenty-odd years" and a good fit for reality television.[37] MTV's Maisy Fernandez preferred it to Jeannie Garth: A Little Bit Country, a reality show starring Doherty's former Beverly Hills, 90210 co-star Jennie Garth. Although Fernandez praised Doherty for creating "the most compelling reality TV", she criticized her choice of television network: "The likelihood of someone finding this show accidentally is minimal".[38]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 "Shannen Says, Season 1". iTunes. Apple Inc. April 10, 2012. Archived from the original on December 20, 2015. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  2. ↑ "Shannen Doherty Is Coming Back To TV!". Perezhilton.com. July 20, 2011. Archived from the original on July 22, 2016. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  3. ↑ "Shannen Doherty Returns to Television in New, One-Hour Original WE tv Series". The Futon Critic. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  4. 1 2 3 "About This Show". The Futon Critic. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  5. ↑ Stanhope, Kate (July 20, 2011). "Shannen Doherty to Star in New Reality Series for WEtv". TV Guide. Retrieved August 20, 2016.
  6. 1 2 Kozupsky, Jordana (July 22, 2011). "Shannen Doherty gets her own reality TV show about her own wedding". IrishCentral. Archived from the original on August 4, 2016. Retrieved August 4, 2016.
  7. ↑ Kirby, Iona (April 10, 2013). "'I've directed TV shows. How hard can a wedding be?': Shannen Doherty and fiancé come to blows as they plan nuptials on reality show". Daily Mail. DMG Media. Archived from the original on July 23, 2016. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  8. ↑ Goldsmith, Jill (April 21, 2012). "AMC woos public coin, teases suitors". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on August 2, 2016. Retrieved August 2, 2016.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Michelson, Noah (May 4, 2012). "Shannen Doherty Talks Reality TV, Gay Marriage, And Being Scarred By 80-Year-Old Penises". The Huffington Post. AOL, Inc. Archived from the original on July 22, 2016. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  10. ↑ Nunn, Jerry (April 25, 2012). "Shannen Doherty: On her reality show and gay BFFs". Windy City Times. Archived from the original on August 2, 2016. Retrieved August 2, 2016.
  11. ↑ Corneau, Allison (July 21, 2011). "Shannen Doherty's New WeTV Reality Series: All the Details!". Us Weekly. Wenner Media LLC. Retrieved August 2, 2016.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 Furlong, Maggie (May 15, 2012). "Shannen Doherty Talks Old Enemies, New Friends And Getting Married (Again) On 'Shannen Says'". The Huffington Post. AOL, Inc. Archived from the original on July 22, 2016. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  13. 1 2 3 Allick, Chantaie (April 5, 2012). "Shannen Doherty talks about Shannen Says". Toronto Star. Star Media Group. Archived from the original on November 7, 2014. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  14. ↑ Hinckley, David (January 5, 2012). "Shannen Doherty: I'm not Kim Kardashian!". The Huffington Post. AOL, Inc. Archived from the original on July 22, 2016. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  15. ↑ "Shannen Doherty: 'I'm Not a Reality Star'". Life & Style. Bauer Media Group. April 18, 2012. Archived from the original on July 26, 2016. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  16. 1 2 Walsh, Barry (October 4, 2011). "Shannen Doherty series headed to Asia". Realscrean.com. Archived from the original on August 4, 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
  17. ↑ Sitt, Pamela (August 8, 2011). "Tori Spelling Offers to Plan Shannen Doherty's Wedding". MTV News. Archived from the original on July 26, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  18. ↑ Rathe, Adam (August 9, 2011). "Tori Spelling offers to plan former 'Beverly Hills, 90210' co-star Shannen Doherty's wedding". New York Daily News. Daily News, L.P. Archived from the original on July 26, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  19. 1 2 Lacher, Irene (April 15, 2012). "The Sunday Conversation: Shannen Doherty". Los Angeles Times. Tronc, Inc. Archived from the original on September 19, 2015. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  20. 1 2 Berkshire, Geoff (April 10, 2012). "Review: 'Shannen Says' reveals the determined side of Shannen Doherty". HitFix. Archived from the original on February 19, 2013. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  21. ↑ Serpe, Gina (July 21, 2011). "Bridezilla Alert! Shannen Doherty's Wedding Gets Real". E!. NBCUniversal. Archived from the original on July 25, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Shannen Doherty marries in Malibu". The Times of India. The Times Group. October 17, 2011. Archived from the original on August 2, 2016. Retrieved August 2, 2016.
  23. ↑ ""Shannen Says" – All-New Series Premieres Tuesday, April 3 at 9PM ET/PT on WE tv". The Futon Critic. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  24. ↑ "Cast". WE tv. Archived from the original on June 6, 2012. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  25. 1 2 "Shannen Says". Amazon.com. Archived from the original on July 22, 2016. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  26. 1 2 "Shannen Doherty Says … Better Luck Next Time?". Perezhilton.com. April 19, 2012. Archived from the original on July 22, 2016. Retrieved July 16, 2016.
  27. 1 2 3 "Sunday Cable Ratings: 'Game of Thrones' Rises, Ties NBA Playoffs + 'Real Housewives,' 'The Client List,' 'Army Wives,' 'Mad Men' & More". TV by the Numbers. Zap2it. May 1, 2012. Archived from the original on March 9, 2016. Retrieved September 22, 2010.
  28. 1 2 3 "Sunday Cable Ratings: NBA Playoffs + 'Game of Thrones', 'The Client List', 'Army Wives,' 'Khloe & Lamar', 'Mad Men' + More". TV by the Numbers. Zap2it. May 8, 2012. Archived from the original on March 10, 2016. Retrieved September 22, 2010.
  29. ↑ "Shannen Says Super Teaser!!". Perezhilton.com. February 29, 2012. Archived from the original on July 26, 2016. Retrieved July 26, 2016.
  30. 1 2 "AMC/Sundance Channel Global Acquires Hell On Wheels, Breaking Bad, The Slap & Shannen Says". AMC Networks. Archived from the original on October 12, 2011. Retrieved October 4, 2011.
  31. ↑ "Showatch". The Futon Critic. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  32. ↑ Keslassy, Elsa. "AMC/Sundance Global buy 4 series". Variety. Penske Media Corporation. Archived from the original on August 4, 2016. Retrieved August 3, 2016.
  33. ↑ "Shannen Says (2012)". TVShowsOnDVD.com. July 27, 2016. Archived from the original on September 28, 2016. Retrieved September 28, 2016.
  34. ↑ "TV Review: Shannen Says". Life & Style. Bauer Media Group. April 9, 2012. Archived from the original on July 22, 2016. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  35. ↑ "Shannen Doherty Looks Back on '90210': I'm Glad I Played Brenda, Not Kelly". Celebuzz. April 10, 2012. Archived from the original on October 27, 2015. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  36. ↑ McDonough, Kevin (April 10, 2012). "Can a bad girl ever grow up?". Hathaway Publishing. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
  37. ↑ "'Shannen Says' Premiere: Shannen Doherty Is Always Right, 'And You're Stupid!'". The Huffington Post. AOL, Inc. April 12, 2012. Archived from the original on July 11, 2014. Retrieved July 22, 2016.
  38. ↑ "TV Throwdown: Jennie Garth Vs. Shannen Doherty". MTV News. May 4, 2012. Archived from the original on July 25, 2016. Retrieved July 25, 2016.
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