‘UnREAL’ Is Bringing Back Some “Everlasting” All-Stars When It Returns For Season 4

It seems like UnREAL is about to go into its hiatus with a bang, and anything can happen at the end of Season 3. But, luckily, there are more dramatic days ahead, because UnREAL was renewed for Season 4 by Lifetime back in summer of 2017, according to TVLine. But when does UnREAL Season 4 premiere? You may have to wait until 2019 to get your Rachel and Quinn fix (and to see Graham’s attempt at subtle product placement again).

The good news is that UnREAL will definitely have a Season 4 (in fact, it’s already done filming)! The bad news is that another TVLine article reported that the episode count was cut from 10 episodes (which is how long a season of UnREAL usually is) to eight episodes, so you will get less UnREAL for your buck in the fourth season. No exact airdate has been announced yet for UnREAL Season 4, but seeing as Season 3 was pushed back to 2018 from 2017 and Lifetime doesn’t usually air more than one season of the show per calendar year, fans are probably not going to see Rachel and Quinn continue to wreak havoc on the lives of Everlasting contestants until next year. It’s a long time to wait, but seeing as Season 3 of UnREAL has been outstanding, it will all be worth it when the new storylines hit the screen.

And as for what those storylines will be, according to UnREAL showrunner Stacy Rukeyser, they’re partially inspired by the sexual misconduct allegations that befell Bachelor In Paradise’s fourth season. To recap that whole situation: production on Bachelor In Paradise was shut down shortly after it started because a producer made an allegation of sexual misconduct between contestants Corinne Olympios and DeMario Jackson. DeMario denied the allegations, and both Warner Bros. and Olympios’ lawyers determined after their own investigations into the matter that no misconduct had occurred. Olympios then released a statement saying she was satisfied with the outcome of it all. Filming soon resumed, and the season aired.

“The part that was inspirational was the part that I found really shocking, which was that a producer made a complaint to the studio, because that show’s been on for 20 seasons,” Rukeyser says, speaking over the phone before the Season 3 finale. “I’m sure a lot of stuff has happened, because people who work in that world tell us that UnREAL is very realistic… but no one’s ever made a complaint. This was the first time, and that seem really shocking to me.”

Rukeyser goes on to explain that producers don’t normally interact with people at the studio — they may not even know who to contact there — but imagines that something during must have “crossed a line" for one of the producers. Also, Rukeyser asks, who is that producer? “I also found it shocking and surprising that no journalist or tabloid has found that producer or talked to that producer to say, ‘What’s your story? What was it that made you feel uncomfortable?’ That sort of got squashed and silenced… it smelled like there was a mystery there that was worth exploring.”

Besides this ripped-from-the-headlines inspiration, Rukeyser says, Season 4 of UnREAL will be an all-stars season, with fan favorite August (that hot Aussie!) returning, and it will be more a challenge-type format than a romantic date thing. Also returning, according to TVLine, is Faith, the closeted Christian contestant that viewers last saw in Season 1. And what about Quinn and Rachel? “As anybody who has seen Shiri Appleby’s Instagram feed can know, she’s blonde in the fourth season and has transformed herself physically,” Rukeyser says, “but it’s really coming from a place of deep panic inside.”

Fans may feel the same deep panic in having to wait a whole year for Season 4 of UnREAL, but at least the show will have plenty to satisfy fans when it’s finally back.

If you or someone you know has been sexually assaulted, call the National Sexual Assault Telephone Hotline at 800-656-HOPE (4673) or visit online.rainn.org.