It’s the most X-rated reality series on Australian television, but not everything is quite as it seems behind the scenes of Aussie Shore.
Geordie Shore alum Charlotte Crosby helms the Aussie spin-off of the smash hit Geordie and Jersey Shore franchises that dominated the US and UK in the mid-2010s.
The retired poster girl of partying, 34, said her Gen Z protégés have made her feel like her own antics were tame, and the original series is ‘like watching paint dry’ by comparison.
In the first two episodes alone, the cast of 11 housemates from all around the country have already shocked viewers with explicit sex scenes, full frontal nudity, and a ‘p**s transplant’ – where contestants urinate on each other in the pool.
In the latest episode, one of the housemates attempts to bring a stranger back to the lavish house in Cairns, Queensland.
After meeting Elliot during a night out, Kyle Tierney drags him back to the luxe oceanfront property where the group lived during the five weeks of filming.
But throughout the series, fans are going to see a lot more action between the castmates than with anyone they meet in real life.
Aussie Shore producers and Paramount+ executives have revealed top secret details of what goes on behind the scenes
Geordie Shore alum Charlotte Crosby helms the Aussie spin-off of the smash hit Geordie and Jersey Shore franchises that dominated the US and UK in the mid-2010s
And There’s a reason for that. Well actually, quite an extensive list of them, according to Aussie Shore’s executive producer Dan Sheldon.
The X-rated series is billed as: ‘We’re hot, we’re horny, and we’re ready to f**ing party.’
However, the wild sex scenes viewers see on-screen have caveats.
Unlike the halcyon days of reality television that Millennials were raised on, sitting in their bedrooms with AOL and MTV, producers have a strict duty of care to the cast.
Meaning, any non cast-members wanting to sleep over with someone they met on a night out had to undertake several robust security checks before even setting foot in the property.
The X-rated series is billed as: ‘We’re hot, we’re horny, and we’re ready to f**ing party’
Any visitors to the lavish oceanfront mansion in Cairns, Queensland had to be stone cold sober and complete rigorous background checks and consent training, as well as a 20-minute cool off period before any one night stands, to enter the house. Pictured: Callum Hole
They also had to be stone cold sober to enter the lavish – and rented – property on Hibiscus Lane in Holloways Beach.
‘It’s a long detailed process,’ Sheldon told news.com.au.
Nothing sets for the stage for a steamy one-night-stand quite like a team of film crew performing consent checks, background checks, criminal checks, police checks, court checks, and medical checks.
‘They have to have written right consent as well, and there’s a 20 minute cooling off period. It’s very strict. Brutal.’
Sarah Thornton, Head of Popular Factual at Network 10 for Paramount ANZ, said some Shore shows (of which there are more than 15 around the world, including the UK’s Geordie Shore) don’t allow the cast to bring outsiders in.
Filming a group of boozed up 20-somethings running wild in a fully-funded party house, while also quietly intervening so that nothing actually dangerous happens, ‘is already ‘a logistical nightmare,’ she said.
Thornton said other Shore franchises have followed similar protocols, but true to Australian nightlife culture, additional precautions were added.
‘I guess I’d say there’s this sense of real freedom and a bubble of freedom around the cast, and then there’s a lot of people working incredibly hard on very serious things to make sure that they’re in that bubble in a way that’s really safe.’
Cast members and producers were told if people came back, they had to be sober, show their passport and consent on camera and go through all the background checks.
One of the enduring defenses for ‘low-brow’ or ‘eyebrow-raising’ reality TV has always been its sort of anthropological value.
The unscripted conversations are a sort of cringe time capsule of the societal moment. One UK Love Islander who cried when she found out Brexit would impact her Euro holidays went viral, for example.
Catia Sinigaglia said in a TikTok this week that despite being a super fan of Jersey Shore, she didn’t think Aussie Shore would hold a candle to its predecessors.
The self-proclaimed ‘Hot Mess’ and shameless flirt said ‘times have changed’ and ‘we’re very different’ from the casts of the 2010s.
The 23-year-old personal trainer has become a firm favourite for her unfiltered honesty that fans say reflects Aussie culture.
Despite the cast undertaking rigorous consent training, the crew working behind the scenes said they still had to intervene in situations with the cast ‘all the time’ about unacceptable behaviour.