7 Reality Stars Desperate For A Comeback
Published on October 25, 2017. Updated August 27, 2019Fame is a tricky thing because, while it comes on quickly, it fades twice as fast. This is especially true when it comes to reality TV where there’s a revolving door of cast members to make each new season better than the last. It’s pretty obvious reality TV isn’t a long-term job, but many celebrities use it as a launching pad to kick start their career. Sometimes it works, but a lot of the time it doesn’t — and once the spotlight fades, it’s tough to get back. These stars will do anything to get another 15 minutes of fame, so let’s take a look at 7 reality stars who are desperate for a comeback!
7. Gretchen Rossi
Gretchen Rossi first rose to fame on The Real Housewives of Orange County. She appeared on the show from season 4 to season 8, but was fired after her storyline began to fall flat. She and fiance Slade Smiley did their best to remain relevant after being laid off by Bravo and even tried to save face by claiming they left on their own accord to pursue other opportunities, but it’s been pretty much silence from them ever since. Gretchen pops up in the media every now and again to give interviews on her former cast mates or her relationship status, and even tried to make a comeback on the show by making a guest appearance to stir up drama. Sadly, her attempts to wiggle back into the Real Housewives fame haven’t worked.
Broadimage/REX/Shutterstock6. Heidi and Spencer Pratt
These two were deemed reality TV villains after starring on five seasons of The Hills. Heidi was brought onto the Laguna Beach spin-off as one of the main cast members in season 1, and when she met Spencer Pratt in season 2, they became inseparable. Spencer was ruthlessly mean to Heidi’s best friend and star of the show, Lauren Conrad, and he’s made a point of keeping up with his evil persona by continuously slamming Conrad in the media. When The Hills came to an end in 2010, all the cast members went off to live their lives off-screen, but Heidi and Spencer continued to grasp at fame by selling stories, going on any reality show that would have them like I’m a Celebrity…Get Me Out of Here! and Celebrity Big Brother, but they were never able to reinvent the fame they once had as MTV stars. Let’s face it, these two are irrelevant without The Hills, but we have a feeling they’ll continue to pop up in the media to make some money off a story any chance they get!
Photo by REX5. Paris Hilton
Paris Hilton has always been a controversial star. She has one of the most well recognized names in Hollywood, but is essentially famous for being famous. She was destined to live a life a luxury since she’s the great-granddaughter of Conrad Hilton, the founder of Hilton Hotels, but it wasn’t until the early 2000s when she was deemed New York City’s “It” girl in 2001 and then, in 2003, a sex tape featuring her and her ex boyfriend, Rick Salomon, was leaked and immediately became a media sensation. A few weeks later she began starring in her own show, The Simple Life, beside her best friend Nicole Richie. Hilton knew how to keep the momentum going and began releasing books, appearing in movies and even dabbled in a singing career! Sadly, none of her “talents” stuck and once her TV show was cancelled, she quickly became irrelevant. Hilton tried to make a comeback with the show Paris Hilton’s My New BFF, but it failed miserably. Paris Hilton will always be famous, but she’s not relevant anymore. Her career reached its peak in the mid 2000s.
John Salangsang/BFA/REX/Shutterstock4. Nick Viall
He’s become a Bachelor nation star after finishing as the runner-up in two consecutive seasons of The Bachelorette, appearing on a season of Bachelor in Paradise, and then starring as The Bachelor in season 21. This guy just can’t seem to keep a date! Nick Viall has been extremely open about his struggle to find love and it’s clear he doesn’t mind the attention it brings when he does it on-screen. Viall wants to make a career for himself in Hollywood, so it wasn’t surprising that after he finally found love on his season of The Bachelor with Vanessa Grimaldi, he didn’t seem to worried about jeopardizing his relationship by jumping right into a stint on Dancing with the Stars. Of course, their relationship didn’t last and the jury is still out on whether he’ll be able to make a career as an actor, but he will have his shot in an episode of Speechless which is set to air in November.
Photo by MediaPunch/REX Shutterstock3. Blac Chyna
Similar to Paris Hilton, Blac Chyna is one of those celebrities who’s famous for being famous. She hasn’t actually done anything of value in Hollywood, except date Tyga during his very quick peak of fame, and then make the controversial move onto Rob Kardashian. Of course, being linked to a Kardashian was a surefire way to stay in the spotlight. During the hot second that they were together, they got engaged, had a child and landed their own show called Rob and Chyna which lasted for one season. Now that their relationship is over, she’s got no reason to be in the public eye, but we all know that, wherever there is a platform for attention, she’ll take it — even if it means stirring up more drama for the media! Her latest stint is to sue the entire Kardashian family for allegedly ruining her show with Rob…even though they weren’t together by the time they started season 1, so a second season was always doubtful.
John Milne/SilverHub/REX/Shutterstock2. Corinne Olympios
Corinne Olympios competed on season 21 of The Bachelor as she vied for Nick Viall’s final rose. Despite being hated by her fellow cast mates and many fans, she made it pretty far. She gained a lot of attention because of her unusual behavior, which, to be fair, provided a lot of comic relief on the show! While we admit she was hilarious, it was clear she wasn’t interested in getting married to Nick. Her agenda was to make a name for herself — and it worked! Her social media presence grew, and she was invited on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, and everyone knew who she was, even people who weren’t watching the show. After being eliminated from The Bachelor, it wasn’t surprising to learn she’d jumped on the opportunity to appear on Bachelor in Paradise, but that didn’t exactly go as planned..or did it? We’re still not quite sure what happened with the BIP scandal between DeMario Jackson and Olympios, but the two definitely kicked up a lot of dust when they got the entire production shut down. It caused a huge media storm, one they continue to feed by gallivanting around L.A. together and posing for pictures. We’re sorry but unless they continue their Bachelor careers…their 15 minutes is up.
Jen Lowery/SilverHub/REX/Shutterstock1. Brandi Glanville
She was introduced to Real Housewives viewers as the new girl on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills in season 2, and she quickly became one of the most talked about cast members on the show. She stuck around until season 5, but when her storyline (and friends) ran out, she was forced to take a step back. Glanville’s career no doubt revolves around her controversial character and say-it-like-it-is sense of humor, so without an outlet, she lost her audience. It wasn’t at all surprising to learn that she wouldn’t stay away long. She came back in season 6 as a guest and continued tweeting about all her former cast members when the show aired. Thankfully, Glanville has toned it down in recent months, but she’s never been known to turn down an interview or a chance to air any of her own dirty laundry (or her ex-husbands) for another 15 minutes of fame!
