The cast of The Hills: New Beginnings is reportedly angry that production for the reality show has been put on indefinite hold.
The second season of the MTV hit was previously given the green light, but an insider has now revealed that the network has gone “silent” as far as a timeline for production to begin, despite a plan to keep things safe amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
The source said that Evolution, the show’s production company, hired an outside consultant, an infectious disease doctor, and a dedicated team to do COVID-19 testing on the cast members. In addition, filming locations were set to be thoroughly cleaned prior to shooting.
But despite the protocols put in place to ensure everyone will be safe, Viacom and MTV aren’t talking about a start date.
“The network has not told the cast why they were put on hold,” the insider told Page Six . “Evolution spent months getting ready to start filming and now MTV has gone silent on them.”
The insider added that it’s “shocking” that the network won’t allow The Hills to continue filming safely.
“Everyone is perplexed,” they said. “The cast is ready, willing, and able to pick up filming again with LA County signing off on it.”
The source added that “a ton” of filming can be done outdoors and in the cast members’ homes without going into public places at all.
The Hills: New Beginnings was originally set to resume filming at the end of July or in early August, according to a previous report by Page Six . At the time, it was reported that producers were working closely with local health officials to assure that there would be a “healthy” filming situation.
It was also teased that the cast – which includes Brody Jenner, Audrina Patridge, Heidi Montag, Spencer Pratt, Kaitlyn Carter, Justin Bobby Brescia, Frankie Delgado, Whitney Port, Jason Wahler, and Brandon Thomas Lee – would be doing some “self-shooting.”
Mischa Barton and Stephanie Pratt both exited The Hills: New Beginnings after one explosive season on the reboot. It was announced that socialite Caroline D’Amore has been signed as Barton’s replacement for the upcoming season.
In addition, there have been rumors that original Hills star Kristin Cavallari could make a cameo on the spinoff show. OG Hills star Spencer Pratt said previously noted that he’s excited about Kristin’s “new chapter” following her divorce from former NFL player Jay Cutler, and he added that the mom-of-three’s “chapter” would hopefully include being on The Hills and dating.