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Loring is a Los Angeles-based writer, director, and creative producer. His work has been commissioned by a diverse range of clients- from Havas Worldwide to Wisecrack, inc.- and has been screened around the world. Through a background that blends project development with physical production across multiple formats, Loring has developed a uniquely eclectic skillset as a visual storyteller.
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Backed by some of the heaviest hitters in entertainment, Hulu has claimed a surprisingly unique and highly valuable position among its fellow streamers. For producers shopping their next unscripted project, Hulu offers a distinctive set of programming advantages that shouldn’t be ignored.
In this post, we’re putting Hulu’s unscripted programming under the microscope. We’ll examine some of its current hits, take a look at what shows are coming down the pipe, and analyze programming trends to find out what Hulu might be looking for next.
Hulu has been a force in entertainment since 2007. In the two decades since, the platform has evolved into a major player in the streaming wars. Hulu serves as the online home for content from a diverse range of providers, allowing it to attract a hybrid audience that seems rare among its competitors.
Hulu’s slate of unscripted series benefits from that same competitive advantage. The streamer pulls together content from networks like ABC, FOX, and TLC, in addition to its own streaming originals. Audiences can even access Hulu programming through Disney+, the Walt Disney Company’s flagship streaming platform with whom Hulu will likely merge in the future.
As its service continues to evolve, Hulu continues to expand and diversify its unscripted library. To understand the streamer’s programming preferences, we’re going to check out five of the platform’s current unscripted hits.
The Kardashians remains a juggernaut in reality television. The series consistently shapes the conversation around unscripted content, spawning a legion of imitators but few true competitors.
The Kardashians is a Hulu original series that follows the personal lives of the titular Kardashian-Jenner family. Premiering in 2022, the series is effectively a retooling of its predecessor, Keeping Up with the Kardashians, which enjoyed a 20-season run on the E! network and cemented the Kardashian clan’s status as reality TV royalty.
Given that pedigree, Hulu knew it had a hit on its hands right away. When The Kardashians debuted on the platform, it was the most-watched series premiere for Hulu for the first three days of its release in the U.S. Since that auspicious start, The Kardashians has broken into the top 10 most streamed original series on multiple occasions.
The Kardashians has thus far aired seven seasons in full with an upcoming eighth expected to be announced soon.
Love Overboard combines the thrill of competition with the implicit romance of the high seas. Check out Hulu’s official description of the show:
“Step aboard the ultimate luxury yacht, where sexy singles are ready to mix and mingle… and find love. But there’s a twist… gaining access to the yacht’s extravagant amenities won’t be so simple. As the journey unfolds, romance ignites; alliances form; and hearts are shattered. In the end, only one couple will reign supreme. Who will rise to the top, and who will be left stranded?”
Love Overboard offers a twist on the free-for-all dating competition format popularized by the similarly titled Love Island. With season 2 currently unannounced, it remains to be seen whether Love Overboard will sink or continue to swim on Hulu.
The iconic Project Runway is soon to return to a television near you for its 22nd season. Heidi Klum is back to host and judge the fashion competition series alongside designer mentor Christian Siriano as well as resident judges Law Roach and Nina Garcia. Tyra Banks is also set to make multiple appearances as a recurring judge.
After airing on Bravo for its first five seasons, Project Runway shifted through multiple networks before finally landing under the Disney umbrella. Season 22 of Project Runway will premiere on July 9, 2026 on Freeform followed by streaming availability via Hulu and Disney+.
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives uses a familiar, Real Housewives-style format to take audiences into a unique American cultural niche. Here’s the series’ official description:
“The scandalous world of a group of Mormon mom influencers implodes when they get caught in the midst of a swinging sex scandal that makes international headlines. Now, their sisterhood is shook to its core. Faith, friendship and reputations are all on the line. Will #MomTok be able to survive and continue to give the rulebook a run for its money, or will this group fall from grace?”
According to Hulu, The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives was the streamer’s most-watched unscripted premiere in 2024. Since then, the series has continued to generate significant viewership across multiple seasons. Season 4 of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives debuted on Hulu earlier this year, and season 5 is currently in production.
Starring Lisa Vanderpump of the legendary Vanderpump Rules, Vanderpump Villa transports patented Vanderpump workplace drama all the way across the ocean to a luxury villa in France. Check out the show’s official description:
“Decadence and debauchery collide in Vanderpump Villa, a new reality series following Lisa Vanderpump’s hand-selected staff as they work, live, and play at an exclusive French estate: Chateau Rosabelle.”
After the success of season 1, Vanderpump Villa’s borders continued to expand. Season 2 took the action to Italy, while season 3 found itself in England. Season 4 of Vanderpump Villa has yet to be announced, but viewers can likely expect the globe-trotting to continue.
Now that we’re familiar with the current headliners on Hulu’s unscripted slate, let’s explore how the streamer’s programming is set to expand in the near future. Below, we’ll dig into five upcoming shows that Hulu has recently announced or acquired.
Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro is a spin-off of ABC mainstay Dancing with the Stars that effectively doubles down on the original series’ competitive format. The new show follows “12 exceptional up-and-coming dancers who move into one house and compete in a grueling audition process, all vying for a coveted spot as a pro dancer on Season 35 of Dancing with the Stars.”
Hosted by Robert Irwin, The Next Pro offers an innovative approach to franchise expansion, a unique challenge for broadcast competition series like Dancing with the Stars. Fortunately, viewers won’t have to wait long to see if the experiment has paid off. Dancing with the Stars: The Next Pro is scheduled to premiere on July 13, 2026 on ABC, with next-day streaming available via Hulu and Disney+.
The Girls is an upcoming Kardashian spin-off that specifically follows Khloé Kardashian and her “inner circle of real-life besties.” Here’s the official logline:
“They’re building empires. They’re building families. They’re always unfiltered. Welcome to The Girls, where Khloé Kardashian’s inner circle of real-life besties are raising babies, running businesses, and surviving brutally honest group chats. From surprise proposals to solo parenting, glam getaways to growing pains, this is the new era of reality TV where chaos is couture—and the bonds are unbreakable.”
At the time of writing, no release date has been announced for The Girls, but viewers can likely expect further news by the end of 2026.
House of Stassi is an upcoming series that follows the life and times of reality TV star, Stassi Schroeder. In the series, “Schroeder returns to reclaim her pop culture status, but must face her past and a turbulent inner circle prone to upending her world.”
While not technically a spin-off, it’s worth noting that Stassi Schroeder established her reality reputation as one of Vanderpump Rules’ original cast members. House of Stassi premieres July 29, 2026 on Freeform with next streaming available through Hulu.
The Mob is an upcoming “celebrity reality competition that brings together reality stars, actors, musicians, and television personalities to compete for up to $250,000 in cash.” Hosted by Parker Posey, the series “combines mob-movie-inspired challenges with a game of social strategy, turning family into part of the game.”
The show cleverly combines the thrill of competition with the well-established draw of celebrity competitors, filling out the cast with faces viewers will know from The Sopranos, The Bachelor, Selling Sunset, Dancing with the Stars, and more. Though no release date has been announced, Hulu notes that viewers can expect The Mob to premiere in 2026.
The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives: Orange County is the first official spin-off of Hulu’s smash hit The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives. The new show will follow its own group of young mothers, this time in the coastal environs of California’s Orange County. The official description provides further details:
“This group of young mothers collide in a community where beliefs are not just their religion; they are their identity. While some defend their way of life, fighting against modernity, others embrace change, becoming a platform to disrupt the status quo. Scandals and secrets will be revealed, facades will crumble, and families and friendships will change forever on both sides of the battlefield as this group of strong, game-changing influencers comes together to build their answer to #MomTok.”
No specific release date has been announced as of yet, but The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives: Orange County will likely debut in 2026.
Hulu occupies a unique space among other streamers. The service was originally developed by News Corporation and NBC Universal as “the largest internet video distribution network ever assembled with the most sought-after content from television and film.”
Since that ambitious start, Hulu has endured a considerable amount of evolution, including serious changes in ownership over the years. Despite the intense level of change, however, Hulu’s original mission still rings surprisingly true.
Today, Hulu is owned in full by The Walt Disney Company. As a result, Hulu is now the digital home for some of the most high-profile content available on television. From ESPN to ABC, Freeform to FX, the streaming platform boasts a wider variety of big name content than many of its competitors.
In other words, Hulu seems to offer something for everyone, and—of course—that includes fans of unscripted television.
For producers selling a project, the diversity of Hulu’s programming, in theory, creates a higher-than-average level of audience crossover. A new show is more likely to find and establish its own unique fanbase if it’s exposed to a wider range of viewers.
Similarly, the variety of Hulu’s unscripted programming may mark an opportunity. It might suggest that Hulu, as a platform, is open to a wider range of unscripted series compared to a more rigidly branded network or streamer.
However, it’s worth noting that Hulu’s days of perceived brand independence may be coming to an end. All of Hulu’s content is currently available through Disney+, and reports suggest that the standalone Hulu app may be decommissioned at some point in the near future.
With all that in mind, let’s analyze some of the trends demonstrated by Hulu’s recent programming choices and break down what they might suggest about the streamer’s buying strategy for the near future.
If we examine the current and upcoming shows referenced above, a few clear trends emerge. Below, we’ll make three distinct observations about Hulu’s programming decisions and analyze what they might mean for the future of unscripted content on the platform.
Competition series seem to be back in the unscripted conversation in a big way, and Hulu is making its voice heard. Hulu’s current and upcoming slate both imply that the streamer is willing to experiment with unscripted competition formats.
Perhaps the most interesting note to draw from the series listed above is the variety among them. No two competition shows here are alike, though some do resemble formats that exist on other streaming platforms.
For producers, this suggestion of variety should be encouraging. Hulu’s unscripted slate implies that there’s at least some taste for innovation, even in a long-standing television genre like the competition series.
Celebrities are a mainstay of modern reality television in any market. Hulu offers no exception to that rule and, in fact, doubles down on the tried-and-true principle in its own grand fashion.
Exhibit number one for Hulu’s continued belief in star power is their collection of partnerships with reality TV stars. The Girls and House of Stassi are the latest examples of a trend already well-established by shows like Vanderpump Villa and The Kardashians.
Other series on Hulu’s slate offer their own twists on the trend. The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives: Orange County focuses on a cast built largely of prominent social media influencers, while The Mob offers a grab bag of celebrities from across the whole spectrum of television programming.
While Hulu has demonstrated an openness to format experimentation, the streamer remains committed to the simple draw of celebrity involvement. Producers and viewers alike can expect that trend to continue through the foreseeable future.
Hulu’s interest in unscripted programming goes beyond any individual series. The streamer’s slate demonstrates a clear desire to build entire unscripted universes.
From House of Stassi to The Girls, The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives to The Next Pro, Hulu’s slate is saturated with spin-offs and series cross-pollination. Of the ten shows in this post, seven are directly connected to another reality franchise. Of the three remaining, one (Project Runway) is itself a legendary, long-running series, and another (The Mob) features a cast that draws heavily from the who’s-who of reality TV. Love Overboard stands out as the lone exception.
To those paying attention to the unscripted industry, this trend at Hulu likely doesn’t come as a surprise. Unscripted spin-offs have become increasingly common in recent years, particularly when networks or streamers have a breakout hit on their hands. While this trend may exert a limiting effect on independent producers, we should expect it to continue through the near future.
Whether you’re a producer or an audience member, the future appears bright for unscripted television on Hulu. We’re excited to see how the streamer’s offerings continue to evolve and can’t wait for the next breakout unscripted hit.
If you’re researching networks for your next big sale, be sure to compare this post to our analysis of unscripted programming trends on Peacock as well as Apple TV’s unscripted slate.
The world of unscripted production is fascinating, and Wrapbook loves to dive deep into its inner workings. To sneak another peek behind the curtain of reality TV, check out our exploration of unscripted production incentives or our free eBook on the art of unscripted collaboration.
