Although it may not be much, the participants on “House Hunters” get paid for appearing on the show. One guest stated that she was paid $500 for the episode she appeared on. Not bad!
Also, the production provides everyone with lunch and snacks while the show is filming. That sounds like a pretty good deal as most people would be happy simply with a chance to be on TV.
Again for the Camera, Please!
Reality TV can lose its magic when it stops being spontaneous. Often, when producers don't feel as though things are entertaining enough, they get to meddling, and that's when reality becomes a bit scripted. You know the scenes where the homeowners introduce themselves to us viewers or the scenes where they discuss their feelings about different homes? Well, since the prospective homeowners are not actors, it usually requires several takes until the producers feel they got them 'right'.
There have also been times when a homeowner did things the producers thought were funny or entertaining so they ask them to recreate it so they can catch it on camera perfectly.
Ageism on House Hunters International
The HGTV network is pretty popular among people of all ages, but a while back the network was making an effort to appeal to younger viewers in an attempt to expand its audience.
One lady whose home was featured on an episode of the show as a “reject home,” said that the network hired a younger, 'good-looking' couple to fill in for an older couple in their late 50s who were really the ones purchasing a beautiful retreat in Mexico.
Pawn Stars
Sure, the characters really do run a pawn shop, but that's probably as 'real' as it gets on this show. Rick Harrison never works the actual counters, and all of the customer interactions seen on TV are carefully curated before shooting. Any item a person is interested in selling to the pawnshop is cleaned and vetted, and the customer must sign a consent form most of the time.
To be fair, though, this shouldn’t be a huge surprise because if you wouldn’t trust a real pawnshop, then why trust one on television with the sole purpose of being entertaining?
Duck Dynasty
If you were to take a look through some old photos of the "Duck Dynasty" stars before their show aired, you’ll find a bunch of clean-shaven, sharply-dressed guys who’d look more at home on a yuppie golf course than in the wilderness. As for all of the crazy arguments between the star characters... well, they are scripted for the most part.
The stars themselves have even explained how the show's producers create such tense situations. And sometimes “bleeps” are even added into their fake arguments, just to make things sound more heated than they actually are.