Lifetime Renews 'UnReal' For Season Three

Photo by Michelle Faye

Days before UnREAL’s second season premiere, Lifetime has greenlit a third season of its critically acclaimed scripted drama, UnREAL with a 10-episode order, it was announced by Liz Gateley, Executive Vice President and Head of Programming for Lifetime. UnREAL’s third season is set for a 2017 release.

UnREAL has been recognized with numerous awards and nominations to date including a Peabody, an AFI honor as a Television Program of the Year, and a Critics’ Choice Award for Constance Zimmer’s performance.

Airing on Mondays, beginning June 6th at 10pm ET/PT, UnREAL is Lifetime’s youngest scripted series ever with a median age of 43. Season one averaged 3.7 million views per episode across all platforms.

Co-created by Marti Noxon and Sarah Gertrude Shapiro, UnREAL gives a fictitious behind- the-scenes glimpse into the chaos surrounding the production of a dating competition program, Everlasting. Having already tackled relevant matters of gender politics, the series, starring Shiri Appleby and Constance Zimmer as producers Rachel Goldberg and Quinn King, will stir up the drama in season two when Everlasting casts its first-ever African American suitor.

Returning as series regulars are Craig Bierko as Everlasting’s creator, Chet, who is on a quest to reclaim his full power on set; Josh Kelly as Jeremy, Rachel’s ex-boyfriend and Everlasting’s director of photography; and Jeffrey Bowyer-Chapman as Jay, a field producer whose ambitions run far beyond the show. Everlasting’s new suitor Darius Hill, an All-American football star, will be played by B.J. Britt.

UnREAL is produced by A+E Studios. Noxon and Shapiro executive produce UnREAL, along with Carol Barbee, Robert M. Sertner, Sally DeSipio, Stacy Rukeyser, Peter O’Fallon and Adam Kane. In following the mission of Lifetime’s Broad Focus initiative, this season of UnREAL also features four female directors including Shapiro, Appleby in her directorial debut, Janice Cooke and Nzingha Stewart.

'UnREAL' Is Best New Summer Series of 2015 (July Preview)

Josh Kelly, Siobhan Williams and Shiri Appleby star in UnREAL.
Photo by James Dittiger Copyright 2015

My favorite summer series of 2015 is Lifetime's new primetime serial UnREAL. From co-creators Marti Noxon and Sarah Gertrude Shapiro, and starring Shiri Appleby and Constance Zimmer, UnREAL gives a fictitious behind-the-scenes glimpse into the chaos surrounding the production of a dating competition program.

Set against the backdrop of the hit dating competition show Everlasting, UnREAL is led by flawed heroine Rachel Goldberg (Shiri Appleby), a young producer whose sole job is to manipulate her relationships with and among the contestants to get the vital dramatic and outrageous footage that the program’s dispassionate executive producer, Quinn King (Constance Zimmer), demands. What ensues is an eye-opening look at what happens in the outrageous world of unscripted television, where being a contestant can be vicious and producing it is a whole other reality. Appleby and Zimmer are perfectly playing the many layers of their fascinating multi-dimensional characters.

UnREAL also stars Craig Bierko as Everlasting's eccentric creator, Chet, and Freddie Stroma as the dating show’s handsome and intelligent suitor, Adam Cromwell. Josh Kelly plays Jeremy, a cameraman who is Rachel's ex-boyfriend, while Siobhan Williams is Lizzie, Jeremy’s current fiancée and on-set makeup artist. Everlasting's contestants include Grace, portrayed by Nathalie Kelley, who immediately wins Adam’s heart; Anna, played by Johanna Braddy, who is classy and shrewd, with her eye on the prize; Faith, a sensitive and vulnerable tomboy from the South portrayed by Breeda Wool; and Mary, played by Ashley Scott, a gorgeous single mom who has been unlucky in love. Arielle Kebbel guest stars as Britney, a contestant who has no filter and isn’t on Everlasting to make any friends.

Below is a sneak peek at the four upcoming July episodes:

Lifetime Drama 'UnREAL' Premieres June 1, Set Against Backdrop of Dating Competition Show

(L to R) Aline Elasmar (Shia), Jeffery Bowyer-Chapman (Jay), Constance
Zimmer (Quinn), Craig Bierko (Chet), Shiri Appleby (Rachel) and Josh
Kelly  (Jeremy) star in the all-new Lifetime scripted series UnREAL
premieres, Monday, June 1 at 10 p.m. ET/PT on Lifetime. Photo by Joseph
Viles Copyright 2015

Lifetime's drama UnREAL, starring Shiri Appleby (Girls) and Constance Zimmer (House of Cards, Entourage), will premiere Monday, June 1, at 10 p.m. ET/PT. Based on screening the first three episodes, it's a great new addition to the primetime serial lineup.

Set against the backdrop of the hit dating competition show Everlasting, UnREAL is led by flawed heroine Rachel Goldberg (Appleby), a young producer whose sole job is to manipulate her relationships with, and among, the contestants to get the vital dramatic and outrageous footage that the program's dispassionate executive producer, Quinn King (Zimmer), demands. What ensues is an eye-opening look at what happens in the outrageous world of unscripted television, where being a contestant can be vicious and being a producer a whole other reality.

UnREAL also stars Craig Bierko (Damages) as Everlasting's eccentric creator, Chet; and Freddie Stroma (Pitch Perfect) as the dating show's handsome and intelligent suitor, Adam Cromwell. Josh Kelly (One Life to Live) plays Jeremy, a cameraman who is Rachel's ex-boyfriend, while Siobhan Williams (Black Box) is Lizzie, Jeremy's current fiancée and on-set makeup artist.

Everlasting's contestants include Grace, portrayed by Nathalie Kelley (The Fast and the Furious), who immediately wins Adam's heart; Anna, played by Johanna Braddy (Shameless), who is classy and shrewd, with her eye on the prize; Faith, a sensitive and vulnerable tomboy from the South portrayed by Breeda Wool (Betas); and Mary, played by Ashley Scott (Jericho), a gorgeous single mom who has been unlucky in love. Arielle Kebbel (The Vampire Diaries) will guest star as Britney, a contestant who has no filter and isn't on Everlasting to make any friends.

If you can't wait until Monday, watch the first nine minutes of UnREAL below:

NEWS: ONE LIFE TO LIVE's Josh Kelly Books Lifetime Pilot; JWoww Apologizes; CARRIE DIARIES' Samantha Jones Poster

First Look at The Carrie Diaries' "Nasty" Poster With Young Samantha
THE CARRIE DIARIES' promo art for the new season, debuting Oct. 25 on the CW, includes a peek at Lindsey Gort playing an '80s-era Samantha Jones, the new, younger version of Kim Cattrall's iconic TV character.

The tagline: "Say hello to Samantha. Miss Jones if you're nasty!"

ONE LIFE TO LIVE star Josh Kelly books Lifetime pilot UNREAL
Kelly is set to co-star opposite Shiri Appleby in Lifetime’s drama pilot UNREAL, inspired by Sarah Gertrude Shapiro’s award-winning independent short Sequin Raze. The show goes behind the scenes of a hit competition dating show to follow the experiences of Rachel (Appleby), a young staffer whose sole job is to manipulate her relationships with (and among) the contestants to heighten the drama. Kelly will play Jeremy, a cameraman on the dating show who also is Rachel’s ex-boyfriend.

ONE LIFE TO LIVE's JWoww Sorry for Calling N.J. Gov. Chris Christie "Retarded," Still Finds Him "Disgusting & Judgmental
"Caught off guard last night and said things I normally don't say," the former JERSEY SHORE resident tweeted today after telling TMZ last night that she thought the New Jersey governor was "retarded."

SNEAK PEEK: ONE LIFE TO LIVE Season Finale Streams Monday, August 19th

Photo Credit: The OnLine Network

The first season finale of Prospect Park/The OnLine Network's ONE LIFE TO LIVE streams on Monday, August 19 via Hulu, Hulu Plus and iTunes.

This season of OLTL wraps as the entire town of Llanview attends the annual Man of the Year Gala. Viki and Dorian, co-chairs of the planning committee, hope that the event will go off without a hitch. However, with the conflicts between many of the characters brewing to the surface, that looks nearly impossible. Fireworks explode and it all comes to a head with the shocking return of a fan favorite in a big way.

Fan favorites Viki (Erika Slezak), Nora (Hillary B. Smith) and Blair (Kassie DePaiva) have a jaw-dropping moment in the finale. What, or who, do they see?

Check out a sneak peek scene below featuring Cutter (Josh Kelly) and Nikki (Jenni Farley):

Watch Friday's MORE ONE LIFE TO LIVE Episode Featuring Josh Kelly (Video)

Friday's episode (June 28) of The OnLine Network's MORE ONE LIFE TO LIVE is now online at Hulu.com and iTunes.

Soaps, sex & stars behind the scenes of ONE LIFE TO LIVE: Josh Kelly (Cutter) spills his biggest secret, meet the new girl in Llanview, plus your fan questions answered, hottest moments revealed, and an exclusive First Look at what’s coming up next week!

Watch the episode below:

JWoww Has 'One Life To Live' (Behind The Scenes Video)

Go behind the scenes in a new video with Jenni "JWoww" Farley as she shoots her scenes for ONE LIFE TO LIVE.

INTERVIEW: Josh Kelly Loves Being Part of the "Beautiful Family" at 'One Life to Live'

ONE LIFE TO LIVE's Josh Kelly - Photo: Sue
Coflin/Max Photos

Actor Josh Kelly will reprise the role of Cutter Wentworth in ONE LIFE TO LIVE when the show returns (April 29 on The Online Network; available on Hulu, HuluPlus, iTunes and FX Canada). We Love Soaps spoke with him in a brand new interview from the set in Stamford, Connecticut. Read it below:

WE LOVE SOAPS: Welcome back! Did you think this was going to happen?
JOSH KELLY: I thought it would, then it didn't, then I thought it would and it didn't. Now it looks like it is!

JWOWW Gets Soap Opera Acting Tips From ONE LIFE TO LIVE's Josh Kelly (Video)

ONE LIFE TO LIVE invited MTV's REMOTE CONTROL to the set last Thursday to chat with Jenni "JWOWW" Farley about her guest role on the show. They paired her up with hunk Josh Kelly (Cutter) for a few quick soap opera acting lessons. In the video below, Josh teaches Jenni the basics of crying on cue, sucking face and bitch-slapping your co-star (okay, so she does already know a little something about that last one), ending with quite a hands-on demonstration.

NEWS ROUNDUP: Joan Collins Secret, Ken Kercheval Returns to Dallas, Daytime Ratings

DYNASTY'S Joan Collins reveals the secret to her success
"I’ve an indomitable spirit and I have always worked hard. I never give up and I don’t believe in getting something for nothing. I had excellent values from my parents. My father taught me never to expect anyone to give me a hand out, and that there would always be better and more clever people coming along, so I had to be really good at what I did."

Counting Down... Lynn Liccardo weighs in on Soap Blunders
Liccardo shares her initial impressions on the soap blunders list.