Just How Scripted Below Deck Really Is?

Bravo's Below Deck franchise has been on the air for more than a decade, and in that time, it has earned millions of viewers, a sizable fan base, and a well-deserved place among the best reality shows. Fans note that unlike other popular reality projects, Below Desk feels real and unscripted.

But is that true, or does the Bravo team do a perfect job of scripting the show so that no one notices? Well, both the network and the cast unanimously say that Below Deck is as real as reality TV gets.

For example, Captain Jason Chambers, a fan favorite on Below Deck Down Under, recently told Media Week that the crew of his yacht (who are also the cast of the show) simply don't have time to act in front of the cameras, as they are busy with their day jobs and keeping the guests safe.

'The best thing about this show, it's a real reality show,' Chambers said. 'There are elements around the weather and we've got to please the charter guests, so you put all of that into the forefront of your mind because that's what's got to be done. You have no time to worry about the cameras.'

Chambers echoed the words of Captain Lee Rosbach, who told Reality Blurred in 2015 that everything we see on screen is 'a pretty accurate snapshot' of what really happens on board.

'What happens happens and it's all caught on film,' the captain said. 'Any time you get people that are living and working together in that close proximity, you're going to have issues and things are going to happen, and drama's going to ensue. It's been that way in yachting for years, long before the series came around.'

Captain Lee added that in contrast to other reality shows, the cast of Below Deck is not just hired for their looks and scandal potential. Captains have real power over crew decisions. Anyone who steps foot on a yacht has to be a professional, and if someone is not doing their job right, they get fired, no matter how much the viewers love them.

Bravo's Executive Producer Courtland Cox also confirmed while answering questions about Below Deck for Bravo TV that the show is 100% unscripted. The producer assured that all the drama happens in real life and the production team is only there to capture it and then edit it into a compelling episode.

'Things that happen on boats are so crazy and so unpredictable and so unimaginable that you just have to embrace it,' Cox said.

Well, it looks like there's enough drama in yachting to keep the franchise going for years to come without being scripted.

Source: Media Week, Reality Blurred, Bravo TV.