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‘Selling Tampa’ is canceled, cast blames racism for decision
“I feel like we weren’t given a second chance, possibly because of what we represented as minority women,” cast member Juawana Colbert tells Page Six.
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‘Selling Tampa’ is canceled, cast blames racism for decision
By Eileen Reslen
November 11, 2022 | 4:53pm
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"Selling Tampa" was not renewed for a second season, Page Six can exclusively reveal. Netflix
“Selling Tampa” will not be renewed for a second season — and some of the cast believes racial discrimination played a role in the decision, Page Six has exclusively learned.
“When they show us [black women] in a different light — when we’re bickering, fighting and name-calling — they get a Season 2 and Season 3, but that’s not what we were displaying,” cast member Juawana Colbert tells us.
“I feel like we weren’t given a second chance, possibly because of what we represented as minority women.”
“Selling Tampa” premiered on Netflix in December 2021. The cast was entirely made up of women of color: Colbert, Colony Reeves, Anne-Sophie Petit, Tennille Moore, Karla Giorgo, Rena Frazier, Alexis Williams and Sharelle Rosado, who is the head broker of Allure Realty, the firm the show is centered around.
Enlarge ImageThe cast believes race was behind Netflix’s decision to not give them a second season.Netflix
We’re told all of the ladies were left wondering for nearly a year whether the show would be picked up for a second season, and a source says they were given the “runaround.”
The insider, who asked to remain anonymous, tells Page Six the cast got “hundreds” of DMs “daily” from fans asking about a new season, but they didn’t know what to say.
Then, just last week, we’re told Adam DiVello, the creator of the “Selling” franchise that also includes “Selling Sunset” and “Selling the OC,” and producer Skyler Wakil asked the cast to hop on a Zoom call, where they broke the news.
“Adam specifically said [the decision] was related to numbers but never gave any additional information,” Colbert, 41, says. “I don’t know if he was talking about rating numbers or budget numbers. He just said numbers.”
Enlarge ImageAdam DiVello, who also created “Selling Sunset” and “Selling the OC,” blamed “numbers” for “Tampa” being cut.Getty Images for MTV
The source reiterates that the cast was not given much of an explanation and were instead just told to tell inquiring fans, “There aren’t any plans right now for more ‘Selling Tampa,’ but luckily the first season is still on Netflix for fans to rewatch or discover.”
“We know that [‘Selling Tampa’] was No. 1 in multiple countries, and it did fairly well,” the insider adds. “Obviously, it’s not going to be a ‘Selling Sunset’ Season 5. … It’s just weird. All of a sudden this all-black cast doesn’t even get a chance for a Season 2.”
According to the Orlando Sentinel, “Tampa” was the No. 1 show in the US on Netflix within 24 hours after its release.
Colbert tells Page Six that since the numbers excuse doesn’t seem to add up, the cast is convinced that they are being held to an unfair standard or ratings expectation.
“When it comes to a minority show of all minority cast members, we’re going to naturally have lower numbers because we are a minority in numbers [of the population] in general,” the real estate agent explains.
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"Selling Sunset" and "Selling the OC" both have predominantly white casts.
Netflix
Colbert adds that there were a few other issues that came up while filming that show Netflix and their producers were “out of touch” on how to film with an all-black cast.
She says the producers had an expectation for the women to get ready within an hour for confessional interviews, which many of the cast expressed was unreasonable.
“With sew-ins or the types of extensions that typically women of color have to get, we don’t work on that same time frame,” Colbert tells us. “It’s not a wash-and-go. Women that are minorities, it’s not that easy. Our hair, just in general, takes longer.”
The businesswoman says her co-stars spoke up to production, and while their remarks were not “negatively received,” not much change took place afterward.
“I don’t recall it being like, ‘OK, we understand. We’re going to make a conscious effort to do something different,'” Colbert says. “It was almost like it wasn’t said.”
Enlarge ImageJuawana Colbert says producers were “out of touch” with what an all-black cast needed.Netflix
She adds, “Whoever they had on the ground is out of touch a little bit with working with a cast of all-minority women,” before noting that not all of production was white, but those “in control” of making big decisions were.
The insider, meanwhile, claims DiVello never visited the “Selling Tampa” cast on set — as he reportedly has done with both of his other hit shows.
“[The cast] didn’t meet Adam until a month or two after the premiere,” the source alleges. “Adam is on set with all his other shows, except this. Granted, there was COVID, so I’m sure that’s an excuse.”
Colbert also notes that there was an issue from the onset of the marketing for their show.
In the first “Selling Tampa” teaser, “Selling Sunset” head honcho Jason Oppenheim is seen standing in front of his predominantly white cast and handing over a set of keys to Rosado, 35, and her all-black cast.
“I think with the all-white cast members of ‘Selling Sunset’ handing off a key to all-women black cast members in Tampa kind of set us up for misrepresentation and comparison and, really, a competition, honestly,” Colbert says. “I think from the get-go, we were set up a little bit at a disadvantage.”
After “Selling Tampa” premiered, radio host DJ Envy publicly criticized the show for not featuring as many sales as its predecessor.
“1 show sold no homes….NONE!!! Kind of embarrassing. The other show sells homes. Hmmm….” the “Breakfast Club” host wrote on Instagram in January.
Colbert says of the discrepancy, “For whatever reason, they chose to edit it how they wanted to edit it, but we are all active, we are all busy, we all have higher-end homes that have sold, and we have ones that are not higher-end homes that have sold.
“We are all active agents. When we were filming, there were deals that were done, but that’s now how it was edited.”
Enlarge ImageColbert claims her co-stars sell high-end properties, but it was not edited into the show.juawanacolbert/Instagram
We’re told that after “Selling Tampa” got the axe, producers considered a spinoff in Miami. Additionally, a pilot featuring Latin and black men and women was filmed but not picked up.
“For some reason, they said no to it. What are they going to say yes to? Do they need to have four black cast members that are basically another [‘Selling Sunset’ star] Christine Quinn? Like, what’s going on?”
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There was another show in the works, according to a source, but most "Selling Tampa" co-stars were not asked to take part.
Netflix
The source adds that Netflix allegedly wants “model-like people” who are “wealthy,” “young” and “fit” for the new show it’s said to be working on.
The criticism surrounding the demise of “Selling Tampa” comes just as Lauren Speed of another Netflix show, “Love Is Blind,” called out her franchise on Twitter for allegedly “cutting all the black women” from the show.