The Most Shocking Moments In Reality TV History
Colton’s Fence Jump
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By now, the shock of someone not knowing about Colton Underwood’s jump might outweigh the initial shock of seeing the jump take place. The most recent season of The Bachelor was arguably one of the most memorable ones yet. Numerous women ‘dumped’ Colton by leaving the show before he had the chance to give them a rose. When it came time for the fantasy suites, it was apparent that Colton had his heart set on Cassie Randolph. There was only one problem. Cassie didn’t know whether she felt the same way about Colton, and decided to end things (for the moment) with the former football player. Colton spiraled out of control, removed his mic, and decided to hop the fence and disappear into the streets of Portugal. Sidenote: Chris Harrison’s performance in the aftermath of this event was legendary.
The Situation’s Header
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From the time Jersey Shore debuted, Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino was an unbelievable character. Between his antics with his roommates, women, and his tendency to drink a little too much, The Situation was a constant source of entertainment. At times, however, it went too far and the house was turned upside down. When the gang decided to head to Italy to film Jersey Shore Family Vacation, The Situation was in rare form. In the midst of a heated argument with Ronnie — a common occurrence — Mike slammed his head into a concrete wall. The Situation was concussed as a result, and had to deal with both the pain and embarrassment of the moment. Now sober, Mike has said he was withdrawing at the time of the incident and didn’t think the move through.
Australia’s Next Top Model Snafu
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There is nothing quite like thinking you have won something, only for a judge to take the victory away from you moments later. In this case, the season finale of Australia’s Next Top Model, season six, was broadcast live — leaving an entire country witness to host Sarah Murdoch’s massive flub. Murdoch announced Kelsey Martinovich as the winner and promptly interviewed the delighted model. After a few moments, Murdoch received word through her earpiece that she had announced the wrong winner. As she struggled to cope with her mishap, Murdoch eventually announced the real winner — Amanda Ware.
Stealing $1 million
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MTV’s The Challenge has had its fair share of shocking moments. You might see one or two more pop-up a little bit later on, but this is a great place to start. On the season Final Reckoning, two former friends turned enemies — Hunter Barfield and Ashley Mitchell — were teamed together. The big twist for the season was this — whichever partner finished the final with the best time would have the choice to take the $1 million prize, or share it with their partner. After Barfield arguably led the team to victory in the final, it was Mithell who ended up with the choice. Needing no time to think, Mitchell opted to keep the money and leave her partner with nothing. Barfield exploded upon hearing the news and hurled ugly words Mitchell’s way. These enemies should have plenty of opportunities to get back at each other in the years to come.
Flipping Out
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The Real Housewives franchise has been an unstoppable force since its debut in 2006. While an argument can be made about which show is the series’ most popular, the edge goes to The Real Housewives of New Jersey. One of the show’s most explosive moments occurred at the end of Season 1. A nasty argument between Teresa and Danielle broke out at dinner when Teresa felt disrespected by Danielle and her ex-husband. Teresa snapped and called Danielle a “prostitution whore” and a few other choice words, before proceeding to flip the dinner table.
Tell Us How You Really Feel, Tyra
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As awkward as it was to watch a contestant on Australia’s Next Top Model be wrongly crowned the winner, nothing can top Tyra Banks’ rage during the fourth season of America’s Next Top Model. The moment stems from one of the fan-favorites, Tiffany Richardson, being eliminated. Instead of becoming emotional like her fellow eliminated contestant, Richardson approached the others and began to joke around with them. Banks didn’t take kindly to Richardson’s decision, and promptly scolded her. Banks’ performance was as vicious as any you will ever see on television.
Everyone Loves Peanut Butter and Oreos
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Out of all the reality competition shows, Survivor is undoubtedly the most difficult experience. Left on an island with sparse help and limited supplies, contestants must take advantage of any situation that arises — and that is exactly what Jenna and Heidi did during an episode of Survivor: The Amazon. While in the midst of an Immunity Challenge that could help the women advance in the game, the two made the host — Jeff Probst — a proposition. If he were to bring out peanut butter and chocolate for the two women, they would strip naked. Jeff kindly obliges and brings out a tray of peanut butter and Oreos. The women stripped, received their food, and left America stunned.
Déjà vu
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Unlike Survivor, the contestants on Big Brother are given many perks while they are involved in the game. They have unlimited food, comfortable living arrangements, and a nice pool in the yard. Despite these perks, the contestants who reach the end of the game may spend close to 100 days in the BB house. Paul Abrahamian, a two-time contestant, miraculously reached the end twice. Despite being the best player in the game for two-straight years, Abrahamian was denied the $500,000 grand prize on both occasions. It was a surprise to see him lose to Nicole 5-4, but it was downright shocking to watch Paul lose to Josh — also 5-4 — the following season.
A Famous Name
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When Who Wants to Be a Millionaire debuted in August of 1999, it immediately gripped the nation. A quiz competition offering a grand prize of $1 million, Millionaire didn’t have a grand-winner for the first few months it aired. On November 19, 1999, John Carpenter made history. Carpenter breezed through the show and arrived at the million-dollar question without utilizing any of his three lifelines. After Regis Philbin read the final question aloud, Carpenter decided to use his Phone-A-Friend lifeline. However, Carpenter didn’t actually need help — he simply called his father to tell him he was about to win one million dollars. Talk about confidence.
You too, Steve?
Image Source: Daily Mail
It’s one thing to announce the winner of Next Top Model, but to announce the wrong winner of Miss Universe? That’s bad, Steve Harvey. The 2015 Miss Universe pageant came down to Miss Colombia and Miss Philippines. After Miss Colombia received her crown and started to celebrate, Harvey interrupted: “I have to apologize. The first runner-up is, Colombia. Miss Universe 2015 is, Philippines.” It’s hard to come back from a mistake that large, but Harvey has rebounded nicely.
The Birth of Reality TV
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Without The Real World, reality television as we know it would not exist. Often deemed The Godfather of reality, The Real World has had many moments that will stand the test of time. Unfortunately, this particular moment will be remembered for all the wrong reasons. The Real World: Seattle, was the seventh season of the hit show. Irene, a charismatic joker, quit the show after two months. As she was leaving, she got into an argument with Stephen, a closeted gay man who had she had butted heads with previously in the house. Irene outed Stephen, who in response ran after Irene and slapped her in the face. This was a big deal when it originally aired in 1997, and would no doubt be an even bigger shock if it were to happen today.
Stealing Back a Rose
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If you thought the end of Colton’s season of The Bachelor was wild, you won’t believe how Season 13 ended. That season’s bachelor, Jason Mesnick, chose Melissa Rycroft over Molly Malaney. A few months later while filming ‘After The Final Rose’, Mesnick revealed to Rycroft and a national audience that he was still in love with Malaney. In essence, he dumped Melissa in front of millions of people and then went on to profess his love for the woman he had originally dumped. Luckily, there was a happy ending. Jason and Molly are married and have two kids, while Melissa has a family of her own.
The Backpack
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When two legends come together to battle, you know there will be no joking around. Such was the case when Challenge legends CT and Johnny Bananas faced each other in an elimination in the 20th season — Cutthroat. The two challengers were tied together, with the goal being to pull your opponent towards a barrel on your side of the field. CT dominated immediately and the moment affectionately became known as “The Bananas Backpack Elimination.” CT carried Bananas across the arena and hurled him into the barrel, ending Bananas’ season and furthering his own legacy as one of the Challenge’s biggest stars.
The Great Lie
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Jonny Fairplay, one of the most infamous personalities in reality television history, has become synonymous with the show Survivor. Appearing on the series’ seventh season — Survivor: Pearl Islands — Fairplay concocted what Jeff Probst once called “the greatest lie in Survivor history.” Knowing that the show had a history of bringing loved ones to set at a certain point in the game, Fairplay hatched a plan with one of his friends before the show. If he remained on the show long enough for his friend to visit, he wanted the friend to tell him that his grandmother had died while he was gone. His emotional performance has lived on throughout the show’s long history — but Fairplay has little to no chance of ever returning.
Kardashians, Of Course
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The Kardashians are some of the most popular people in the world. They are the unquestioned queens of reality television, and will only be stopped when they choose to do so. Although Kourtney Kardashian doesn’t get as much attention as her sisters, she can claim the title of having the most shocking television moment in the show’s history. Kourtney gave birth to her now-9-year-old son, Mason, during the Season 4 finale. While not unheard of, what happened during the delivery is what shocked viewers. Kourtney — no, not the doctors — ended up pulling out her own baby during labor.
Jersey Shore Assault
Image Source: In Touch Weekly
Out of all of the craziness surrounding the Jersey Shore and its cast members, this awful incident involving Snooki is the worst. Snooki, like the rest of her roommates, enjoyed partying while on the show. Episodes often chronicled their nights out, which included spotlighting the hecklers that often antagonized the group in hopes of being put on TV. One night, the fun came to an abrupt end. Snooki and the crew were at a bar when another group began to take their drinks. As Snooki began to question one member of the group, the man turned around and sucker-punched Snooki in the face. The man was immediately arrested.
Throwing Fists
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The Challenge has had its fair share of fighting. There have been cheap shots, light roughhousing, and scraps — but two fights were particularly shocking. We’ll start with The Duel II. Resident badass CT and known pot-stirrer Adam got into a heated argument when CT accused Adam of trying to ruin his relationship with Diem. CT leveled Adam with a punch and the two continued to wrestle. The cast and crew were unable to stop CT and he continued to go after Adam until he got his punches in.
The second intense fight was between Darrell and Brad. Darrell, riding a four-Challenge winning-streak heading into The Ruins, was goaded into a fight by an intoxicated Brad. Brad made a grave mistake by enticing the fight, and was absolutely pummeled by Darrell. In both instances, all four participants were sent home immediately. CT and Darrell are two of The Challenge’s most intimidating figures and after these fights, nobody dared to mess with them again.
Potty Trained
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The Surreal Life was a wild show to say the least. The show followed a similar setup to The Real World, in that people were brought into a house to live together and were tasked with completing activities as a group. The biggest difference — The Surreal Life featured celebrities. Verne Troyer, notable for his stint as Mini Me in the Austin Powers franchise, had one of the most bizarre moments in reality television history. A drunk Troyer decided to ride his scooter throughout the house. After hitting numerous walls and other miscellaneous objects, Troyer decided to relieve himself in a corner — and the cameras had an unobstructed view. Once he made it back to bed, Troyer spent the night making some of the strangest noises you will ever hear.
Banana Man
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Ashley Mitchell may have stolen more money from her partner than Johnny Bananas did, but the moment Bananas screwed over Sarah Rice will never be forgotten. Bananas and Sarah were partners on The Challenge: Rivals III. After securing first place in the season finale, the host — T.J. Lavin — dropped a bomb on the pair. Bananas, who finished with the best overall time, would have the option to keep the prize money for himself, or split it with Sarah. Bananas famously kept the $275,000 prize and left Sarah in tears. Bananas’ decision became a national story and introduced The Challenge to a mainstream audience. Sarah has not been back on the show since Bananas’ betrayal.
Spitting Fire
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VH1’s Flavor Of Love was a phenomenon. 20 women were brought together to compete for Flavor Flav’s love. The show took place in a mansion, and the women received giant clocks on elimination night to signify their safety. Three women stuck out above the rest — Hoopz, New York, and Pumkin. To say New York and Pumkin hated each other would be an understatement. On the night Pumkin was eliminated, Flavor Flav questioned her motives for being on the show. In response, Pumkin argued that he should be questioning New York’s motives instead of hers. An expected argument ensued, but Pumkin took it to the next level. New York challenged Pumkin to slap her, and in response, she spit on her and scurried away. Naturally, New York didn’t take kindly to being doused with her spit and proceeded to claw at Pumpkin and shove her into a cameraman. Can we please get another season featuring these two?
