‘Vanderpump Rules’ Producers Need To Drop “Draconian” NDAs, NBCU Told By Reality TV Stars’ Lawyer; Allegations Of Sexual Violence & More Swirl Around Unscripted Shows

deadline.com:

Hurricane Hilary has come and gone, yet NBCUniversal may be feeling drenched today in more fallout from their reality TV blockbusters like Vanderpump Rules and the Real Housewives franchise.

Three weeks after lawyers for Bethenny Frankel’s move to unionize the unscripted genre sent their first blistering correspondence to the Comcast-owned media giant full of accusations of booze, sexual violence and the “grotesque and depraved mistreatment of the reality stars and crewmembers,” a part two has shown up in EVP/General Counsel Kimberley D.

Harris’ inbox – and it ain’t pretty. “In the course of our investigation, we have not only confirmed the veracity of our initial allegations but have also discovered that the breadth and scope of your wrongdoing is greater than previously believed,” says attorney Bryan Freedman in an August 20 letter sent to the NBCU exec over shows on Bravo, CNBC, NBC and more (read the latest Reality TV letter here). “We are left with the inescapable conclusion that NBC and its production partners are grappling with systemic rot for which sunlight is the first necessary remedial measure,” the Bev Hills legal prize fighter goes on to state, on behalf of himself, Mark Geragos and other lawyers. “To date, that has been impossible owing to the draconian terms of NBC’s contracts with its cast and crew, which contain onerous confidentiality provisions coupled with ruinous penalties for breach.

To ensure silence, NBC has been wielding these contractual terms like a sword.” Pulling Vanderpump Rules and Housewives producers Evolution Media into the mix by name, the attorneys allege that the nondisclosure agreements reality TV cast and crews are told to sign “are unlawful and unenforceable.” Essentially,