Based on the extensive number of Reddit discussions about reality TV shows, it’s apparent that there are more reality shows than TV fanatics imagined could possibly ever have come to be. It ranges from ones available in other countries and regions, from the U.K. to Australia and Brazil, to concepts that have been done, and redone with numerous twists. It’s incredible just how many reality shows have gotten the greenlight, and even how many continue to be on the air and streaming.
Trying to narrow the list down to the reality shows that rank as being the most terrible, however, is tough. Based on Redditor discussions, however, some shows are named again and again as being among the worst.
Toddlers And Tiaras (2009-2013, TLC)
In a Reddit post by Redditor u/pepsi596 who asks for respondents to think outside the box beyond the obvious choices like Toddlers and Tiaras and Honey Boo-Boo, Redditor r3v simply says that there’s no need to think outside the box because “I’m pretty sure if you look at the box, it’s labeled ‘the worst humanity on TV’ and those two shows are in the box.”
Toddlers and Tiaras, the show that made Honey Boo Boo a national sensation, was about kids entering child beauty pageants and their parents who were intent on making them doll-like superstars. The show was controversial yet it lasted seven seasons and led to several spin-offs.
Jersey Shore (2009-2012, MTV)
Despite lasting several seasons and even being resurrected a decade later (and still going) with the sequel series Jersey Shore: Family Vacation, many Reddit users think the MTV reality show is among the worst ever. Redditor overexcitedpuppy says they pick Jersey Shore as the worst “for all reasons known and unknown to man.”
Redditor pepsi596 agrees, saying the show is “full of over-tanned douchebags.” Jersey Shore was about singles from Jersey living together in a house on the Jersey Shore, drinking, partying, and getting up to plenty of drama and trouble. There remain lots of unpopular opinions about Jersey Shore. The revival series, meanwhile, includes much of the same but with some modifications now that several of the roommates are now married with kids.
Bridalplasty (2010-2011, E!)
While Bridalplasty aired for a single season in 2010, it largely flew under the radar without a ton of fanfare. That’s for good reason, it appears, as the premise was unsavory. The idea was that a dozen women competed to win plastic surgery procedures in time for their weddings. Each week, the winner of the challenge would receive one plastic surgery procedure from their wish list, which ranged from Botox to liposuction, nose jobs, and more.
Redditor SubZero807 notes that the show got around the legalities of giving away medical procedures by “parking a yacht in international waters.” They added that because of the time it took to heal, the show ended up featuring “a bunch of desperate, vain, jealous, extra-bitchy, drugged up, stitched up, bandaged up, swollen, leaky, bleeding, crying, miserable creatures just trying to ensure the torture they signed up for.” It ranks as one of the worst reality shows ever, according to IMDb as well.
Keeping Up With The Kardashians (2007-2021, E!)
Despite having a successful 20-season run, Keeping Up With the Kardashians consistently appears in threads by Redditors highlighting the reality shows they deem to be the worst. Redditor fullmetalbby says “Kardashians take the cake.”
The show followed every bit of drama, business dealings, relationship issues, and family discord among the massively popular blended Kardashian-Jenner family. This included all the respective partners of the Kardashian-Jenner sisters (and brother) as well. The show was considered a guilty pleasure for many but still ranks among the worst.
Labor Of Love (2020, Fox)
Receiving criticism for its bizarre premise that some critics said game-ified the conception of life, Labor of Love was a relatively new show that aired for one season in 2020. Hosted by Kristin Davis from Sex and the City, the show saw men vie to be chosen by the female lead as the person she wanted to serve as her sperm donor to start a family.
Redditor GrrGrrBird couldn’t believe the premise of the show, much less that it included the men donating sperm samples from a trailer, one at a time. “As if that wasn’t enough,” they noted, the show “gave their sperm counts aloud on national TV. Honestly, can’t believe that show got the green light.”
The Swan (2004, Fox)
The Swan was inappropriate on many levels, according to Redditors. The Fox show, which actually lasted for two seasons in 2004, was meant to be an “ugly duckling” type makeover story whereby two individuals underwent an extreme makeover. Usually, the idea is to help the person build confidence. In this show, the more attractive of the two after the makeover got the chance to participate in a beauty pageant.
Redditor vocabulazy called the show “pretty f***ked up,” saying the women were “starved, liposuctioned, lipo-sculptured, face-lifted, waxed, and dyed.” Redditor prittyamazing agreed, calling The Swan “straight up the most horrible thing on television.”
Joe Millionaire (2003, Fox, Revived 2022-Present)
Though Redditors don’t get into more detail about why they think Joe Millionaire was one of the worst reality TV shows ever, the series appears again and again as an answer on threads asking for picks on this question.
The show saw a hunky young man and construction worker pretend to be a millionaire to win the hearts of women competing her his affections. In the end, he picked a winner and confessed his true identity, and lack of funds, to her. The show was actually a huge success and was renewed for a second season. It was also revived in early 2022 with a new concept whereby two men – one who is a millionaire and one who is an average Joe – canoodle with women who don’t know which is which. There are even things that fans think Joe Millionaire: For Richer or Poorer does better than The Bachelor. Nonetheless, back or not, many deem it among the worst ever.
Flavor Of Love (2006-2008, VH1)
While some Redditors admitted to actually liking Flavor of Love, most named it among the worst reality shows ever. A now deleted Redditor simply says “Flavor of Love was terrible.” The reality dating show saw Public Enemy rap group member Flavor Flav search for a love interest. Through all three seasons, he never married or even dated any of the women from the show, proving the concept to be largely unsuccessful, though it kept him in the public eye through the mid 2000s.
Like others on this list, it was admittedly a guilty pleasure for fans who got hooked and simply kept watching. Indeed even to this day, fans are curious to find out where the cast of Flavor of Love is now.
My Strange Addiction (2010-2015, TLC)
The reality show about people who had strange addictions was like a car wreck: fans just couldn’t help but watch and wonder if what they were seeing was really true. Thus, the show, which was technically classified as a documentary series, managed to air for six. It covered everything from ritualistic activities to personal fixations.
A now deleted Redditor says the show “makes me sick,” citing episodes that featured “people addicted to eating mattresses and dirty diapers.” Redditor TrueFinalBossKony420 recalls an episode where a “woman was addicted to eating her dead husband’s ashes.” My Strange Addiction also ranks as one of the weirdest TLC shows of all time.
Black. White. (2006, FX)
It’s a wonder the show Black. White. ever made it to television. Produced by Ice Cube and created by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker R.J. Cutler, who is behind movies like The War Room, the controversial premise saw two families, one black and one white, switch races through the use of make-up. They would then continue to live their daily lives as part of this social experiment that purported to try and tackle bigotry head-on. The show ran for a single, six-episode season on FX and, despite the problematic premise, was actually praised by some critics as being “far from a reality stunt” and “unexpectedly intelligent.”
Nonetheless, Redditors who came across even the promo video for the show think it ranks among the worst to ever grace the television screen. Redditor Gsteel11 says it “looks like a skit from MadTV” while Redditor Prudent_Media_4067 sums it up nicely in one word: “Cringe.”