‘Next Gen NYC’ Creator on Shocking Bravo Fans With New Show 

When Michaline Babich created Bravo’s Next Gen NYC, she didn’t intend on casting a slate of children of the women of the Real Housewives. 

“I think many production companies will say that they’ve pitched, ‘We should do something with the housewives’ kids,’” she tells The Hollywood Reporter. “But that’s a concept, not a cast.”

Instead, the showrunner birthed the idea for the show partly thanks to just one cast member she met while working as an executive producer of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City — Brooks Marks, son of Real Housewife Meredith Marks. 

“It really did come out of Brooks, and he had a group of friends in New York,” she says, adding that his close proximity to the rest of his Next Gen NYC co-stars naturally formed a cast that represents the next generation of New York City. 

Still, there’s no denying that having Marks, Ariana Biermann, Riley Burruss and Gia Giudice, all children of Real Housewives, would particularly intrigue the network’s audience. Upon first glance at the series, though, fans were skeptical, with some critics deeming Next Gen NYC “Bravo’s nepo baby reality show.” 

Babich understands the early doubt some fans had towards Next Gen NYC, but that ultimately didn’t stop Bravo viewers from giving in and succumbing to what may be the network’s latest hit. 

Next Gen NYC now ranks as Bravo’s most-watched series and season premiere of all time, and it also debuted as the No. 1 most-watched Bravo episode of all time on its streamer, Peacock, across platforms in a 35-day viewing period.  

“They didn’t really understand the chemistry that this cast has,” she says. “But once they started watching the show, [that shifted]. … Bravo finds great characters, and sometimes, when you’re lucky, they fall in love with the characters themselves, which I think happens with a lot of this cast.”

Below, the Next Gen NYC creator, executive producer and showrunner explains how Brooks’ relationships assembled the cast, the significance of casting the first full-time transgender cast member on a Bravo show and the potential of a Los Angeles-based spin-off “when the time is right.” 

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Going into season one of Next Gen NYC, there was skepticism about how the show would play out. That’s a common thing that happens when Bravo debuts a new show. It specifically happened with The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City and The Valley, and they have turned out to be hit shows for the network. It feels like the same thing is happening with Next Gen NYC, but why do you think that fans were initially skeptical about the show?

I think it was a couple of things. I think that when they looked at the cast, they didn’t really understand the chemistry that this cast has. And maybe, it’s a younger show for the Bravo audience. You know, people use that word “Nepo babies,” and I think people looked at that and there were fans that wanted a different experience showcased in New York City. But once they started watching the show, [that shifted]. And it happens all the time, Bravo finds great characters, and people fall in love with watching characters. And sometimes, when you’re lucky, they fall in love with the characters themselves, which I think happens with a lot of this cast.

When the cast was introduced on the initial debut episode, it felt like Brooks was the glue of this entire friend group. You’re also an executive producer of The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, so when you brainstormed and began [Next Gen], did it all begin with Brooks for you?

For me, it did. It goes way back to when we were doing the presentation for Salt Lake City. I always ask the cast the same two things — what are your biggest concerns about doing TV, and what do you see in it for you? And Meredith and Seth [Marks] both said, “We don’t want to do anything that would embarrass or hurt our kids.” And Meredith’s answer was, “Well, Brooks has always been interested in television,” so you can go back and say that Brooks was a part of that as well. The other thing about Brooks, and that original cast on Salt Lake City, is they’re naturally generous people. They share connections and they share advice, and it’s true. It sounds a little earnest, but it genuinely is my experience with them. They’ve been really helpful to other people, and Brooks had just naturally built relationships with people where he’s a person that people call, like when Ariana was moving to New York, Gia connected Ariana with Brooks because that’s how Brooks is.

Andy Cohen has said that the show was likely initially greenlit because of this concept of it being based around housewives’ children, so when you started casting, is that where it started initially, with Brooks, Ariana, Gia and Riley?

No, it really was Brooks and friends of his. I think many production companies will say that they’ve pitched, you know, “We should do something with the housewives’ kids.” But that’s a concept, not a cast. It really did come out of Brooks, and he had a group of friends in New York. I will also say, in your 20s, friendships are different. The Real Housewives of OC, it started because they lived in the same gated community. When you’re friends in your 20s, you have people coming in and out of friends’ circles, so Brooks was very close with Riley and very close with Gia, and Gia connected Brooks to Ariana. That’s how friendships happen in your 20s. It’s more like circles of friends sometimes colliding with each other.

This cast certainly feels very modern and Gen Z. Why do you think that right now was the best time to bring this new, fresh and very modern show to Bravo?

I honestly think it’s because this cast is at a place in their lives where they’ve watched their parents on television. From not just the housewives’ kids, but Ava [Dash, whose father is Damon Dash] and Emira [D’Spain who] has her experiences with media, they have a maturity level of where they are in their lives and what their relationships are with their family and their friends. To me, personally, they don’t read like other 20-somethings that I’ve done projects and worked with. I’m not saying that they’re the most mature people on the planet, they’re in 20s. There’s always a fascination with the housewives, culturally, these iconic women, and they have these kids, [and] that the fact that [their children] know each other and they’re connected, it’s not a freak of nature, but it’s a fun situation [to see] this connection actually is there. But, was the show built around that? No. I think people also like the show because you get to see some of the most iconic characters, the housewives, Dame Dash, that you know in pop culture, and you get to see them as parents.

It feels like Riley and Ariana are the breakout stars of the show. The story of them being friends when they were younger and now reconnecting and forming this real friendship in their adulthood is so beautiful. What was it like depicting that story on the show, and did you think that they would have a connection with both of their parents being from The Real Housewives of Atlanta?

Obviously they knew each other from childhood, but they were both nervous and excited to see each other. Our field team did a really good job of allowing them to just have a connection with each other and not trying to control it or make a story out of it. They allowed them to just have a conversation and connect. And then, after they filmed, Ariana has said this, I believe Riley has as well, they just went and hung out the rest of the day. I think everybody who worked on the show did a really great job, and the producers who were working with them in the field just allowed them to explore a relationship together and capture the best parts on television without trying to micromanage anything. And everybody was really happy, I wouldn’t say surprised, but nobody really expected them to become best friends, and they really are best friends.

Emira is the first full-time transgender cast member on Bravo ever. Her casting is so monumental to the network. What has it been like having such a monumental casting on the first season of Next Gen NYC?

Emira herself is a monumental person, who she is, how funny she is. If we’re lucky enough to have a season two, [I hope we get to] see even more of Emira because she was so busy last summer. I think that representation is really important, but what’s great about Emira is she was cast for Emira, and she happens to represent and really be a great role model for a whole community. She’s just an amazing person. She’s hilarious, she’s a really fun friend, she’s a person that will check any of her friends in the best possible way that just works on television.

We also have Charlie, who is such a personality. I’ve seen a lot of comparisons of Charlie with another fellow Bravo star in Jax Taylor from Vanderpump Rules. Have you seen those comparisons and what do you think about them?

I have seen it. I think that there are similarities in that they’re both at the center of drama. I think Jax has been on television for a really long time and really understands the process, and this was Charlie’s first season, and his first time doing something like this in the media, so if we get a second season and Charlie continues on the show, it’ll be interesting to see how he evolves. I think that there’s a lot of different sides to Charlie’s personality. Being on a television show, you got to see the part that was the first time being on a television show (Laughs), but he is a big, loud character, and he’s not afraid to share his views on things. 

If the show does move forward with a potential season two, do you think that this leaves the door open for any other housewives’ children to potentially join the show if they move to New York City? Would this open the door for Chloe [Marks, Brooks’ younger sister]?

Sure. Chloe is great, Chloe is a very funny, great character, and she would be a great addition, because we only got to see a little bit of her [throughout season one]. Chloe’s a star.

With a potential second season, do you think that you would continue with this cast, or do you think that you would try to bring any other new, fresh faces to the mix?

Honestly, the most organic answer is watching how these friendships evolve, and I think that that is something that you know, again, with people in their 20s, they go in and out of friendships. I would like to see who else is entering into their worlds, whether it’s dating relationships or friendships. But I do think that this cast, it’s a large cast, but every single person on this cast, they have a unique personality, and if we saw more of them [with a second season], people would only fall in love with them more.

Overall, what has the reception of the show been like, and what’s been the highlight of putting out Next Gen NYC?

I just personally have loved the positive reactions from press and social media. I’ve been doing television for a long time, there’s just such positive reactions to so many of this. It’s two things, one is seeing the positive reactions on social media. Because often, you brace yourself — Bravo audiences are really funny, and they get right to the point, and sometimes it can be a lot, and there’s a lot of positive reaction to this cast. I also think [another highlight is] seeing this cast with their parents. They really love and respect their parents, and I wouldn’t have really expected that from kids who grew up with parents in the public eye. But I also personally have really loved seeing [those] relationship[s] that they have, especially because it’s hard when kids go from living under somebody’s roof and their rules — that transition to mentorship or friendship — and for the most part, this entire cast has really great relationships with their with their families and and I really loved showing bits and pieces of that.

Have you thought about potentially doing a Next Gen LA, and if so, would you continue to feature a cast of children of Real Housewives and stars whose parents were also in the public eye?

Yes, absolutely. I mean, that’s the way it goes with television. When people like one thing, you look to give them more, and there’s some [potential] cast [members] that we have met in L.A. and beyond that would be great for a Next Gen LA.

Have those conversations begun, or is it just a general idea that you’ve been bouncing around?

That’s one of the great things about having a production company that does these types of shows. We are always getting introduced to great people, and we found some really amazing casts that, when the time is right, would be great for Next Gen LA.

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The season one finale of Next Gen NYC aired on Tuesday on Bravo. Season one is available to stream on Peacock.