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Shortly after Rachel Smith joined the cable network Bravo, she helped greenlight what has gone down in reality-TV history as one of the most popular shows of all time: The Real Housewives of Orange County<\/em>.<\/p>\nFlash forward to 2025, and the television executive is spearheading Peacock\u2019s unscripted content slate as NBCUniversal Entertainment\u2019s EVP of unscripted content, lifestyle, and documentaries. In the role, which she started in 2023, Smith has overseen several breakout Bravo hits that, <\/strong>when they arrive next-day on Peacock, have helped to cement Peacock\u2019s position as a place for reality fanatics, <\/strong>including Vanderpump Rules, Southern Charm,<\/em> and Summer House<\/em>, and, of course, the Real Housewives franchise and its spinoffs. The streamer has also found additional staying power with shows like The Traitors<\/em> and Love Island USA<\/em>.<\/p>\nSmith, who worked on the unscripted side at BBC America and the Discovery Channel, told Marketing Brew that she\u2019s focused on capitalizing on the power of Bravo superfans known as Bravoholics, who just might watch their favorite shows on Peacock the day after new episodes air on cable. And while some fans may want to rewatch their favorite shows over and over again, she and her team are always on the lookout for new unscripted series ideas for the streamer that are unlike the more typical reality-TV fare.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo much of unscripted television or television is just recycling the same ideas,\u201d she told Marketing Brew.<\/p>\n
We spoke to Smith about her approach to building Peacock\u2019s content slate, and why she thinks the Bravo cinematic universe and new in-person experiences are key to sustaining fandom.<\/p>\n
Fan behavior<\/h2>\n
It\u2019s no secret that Bravo has a diehard fanbase. Some Bravoholics flock to the annual BravoCon to see their fave Housewives<\/em> cast members in person, with more than three-quarters of attendees noting in past years\u2019 exit surveys that the convention \u201cwas the greatest day of their entire life.\u201d<\/p>\nThat\u2019s a powerful fanbase, but at Peacock, it\u2019s not just about bringing over viewers who watch on linear TV.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re bringing in a discrete audience on Peacock,\u201d Smith said. \u201cIt\u2019s not just a duplication of the linear audience. It\u2019s a younger audience. It\u2019s really bringing that Bravo brand\u2026to a much bigger audience.\u201d<\/p>\n
This summer and fall, Peacock is leaning into docuseries infused with some of the Bravo secret sauce: following real people during dramatic situations that Bravo is \u201cknown largely at the moment for,\u201d she said. Nelly & Ashanti: We Belong Together<\/em> will follow celeb couple Nelly and Ashanti navigate their relationship and careers, while Tiffany Haddish Goes Off<\/em> will follow the comedian and a group of her close friends on a trip to Africa.<\/p>\nPeacock also has two docuseries in the Bravo world that are in active development, which were sourced from NBCU Launch\u2019s inaugural Unscripted Pitch Accelerator program last year, Smith said. While many of the details remain under wraps, Smith described the shows as representing \u201creally good, fresh ideas\u201d and noting that the program is an effort to democratize the development process.<\/p>\n
Feeling faithful<\/h2>\n
Peacock\u2019s other unscripted shows have found ways to capitalize on the Bravo fervor. The competition show The Traitors<\/em> features castmembers from various Bravo properties, including Tom Sandoval from Vanderpump Rules <\/em>who will go down in infamy for Scandoval. The castmembers\u2019 personal brands and followings have helped drum up interest for the show, and the third season, which debuted in January, was the most-watched unscripted series in the US at the time of its premiere, per NBCU. Of the reality series on Peacock, The Traitors <\/em>is Smith\u2019s favorite, she told us.<\/p>\n\n
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Beyond castmembers\u2019 personal promotion of the shows they\u2019re involved in, the streamer designs marketing plans during the first seasons to help build awareness of new series. Smith pointed to Bravo\u2019s Southern Hospitality<\/em>, which has become a smash hit over three seasons thanks, in part, to aggressive marketing and social posting: episodes of the show\u2019s third season, according to Deadline, saw a 58% audience increase on Peacock compared to the second season.<\/p>\n\u201cThere\u2019s a lot of competition for eyeballs, Smith said. \u201cSo we need to lean in and really let the world know that this first show is here, whether it\u2019s a new season of Housewives or a new iteration\u2026We will definitely lean in with a bigger marketing push for a first-season show.\u201d<\/p>\n
Love (Island) is in the air<\/h2>\n
Experiential activations are increasingly key to helping to keep reality fans coming back for more on Peacock, she said. (It\u2019s a strategy other streamers have embraced as well.) This summer, The Traitors: Live Experience is coming to London, where participants will, much like the show, go on missions and figure out who the \u201ctraitors\u201d in their group might be. (That pop-up is tied to the show’s UK version.) <\/strong>This month, Peacock is hosting pop-up villas based on Love Island USA<\/em> on the Jersey Shore, as well as in Atlanta, Georgia, and San Diego, California, that encourage attendees to record their own audition tapes while also promoting Season 7 of the series.<\/p>\nAnd of course, there\u2019s BravoCon, which is set to return for its fourth year in Las Vegas this November.<\/p>\n
\u201cBravoCon is a wonderful way to open up that universe to our fans and invite them in,\u201d Smith said. \u201cThey feel like they know these people.\u201d<\/p>\n
06\/19\/25 Correction: This story has been updated to clarify Smith’s role and to reflect that 2025 is the fourth BravoCon.<\/em><\/p>\n06\/20\/25 Correction: The description of the<\/em> Traitors live experience has been updated to reflect that it is associated with the UK version of the show.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\nRead the full article here<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Shortly after Rachel Smith joined the cable network Bravo, she helped greenlight what has gone down in reality-TV history as one of the most popular shows of all time: The Real Housewives of Orange County. Flash forward to 2025, and the television executive is spearheading Peacock\u2019s unscripted content slate as NBCUniversal Entertainment\u2019s EVP of unscripted […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":22381,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[78],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-22380","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-marketing"},"yoast_head":"\n
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