Vanderpump Villa Won't Just Be a Vanderpump Rules Knockoff

Lisa Vanderpump is moving to a new network — and country — with her new unscripted series Vanderpump Villa. Hulu announced a 10-episode order of the project on June 8, the day after the Season 10 Vanderpump Rules finale. Vanderpump hasn’t been shy about reveling in the attention that this season’s cheating scandal (or “Scandoval”) brought to her namesake series and the businesses associated with it. It’s no surprise that she, ever the opportunist, would use that momentum to expand her reality TV empire.

Vanderpump Villa is already being compared to Vanderpump Rules because of its similar construct. But as more details come out, it’s clear that this will be something entirely different. Here’s what we know so far.

What is Vanderpump Villa about?

Vanderpump Villa follows the staff of Vanderpump’s luxury French villa as they “live and work together to navigate every extravagant desire of their well-to-do guests.” This implies a much higher level of commitment than the servers, bartenders, and hosts at the center of Vanderpump Rules, and much more opportunity for drama as the cast members share confined living spaces.

Few other details about the structure and narrative of the series are out, but based on that description alone, Vanderpump Villa feels more closely aligned with Below Deck than Vanderpump Rules. That’s definitely not a bad thing.

Who’s in the cast of Vanderpump Villa?

No one knows yet. Bunim-Murray Productions is in the process of casting the series, currently searching for a head chef, mixologist, sous chef, line cook, housekeeper, fine dining server, event coordinator, event assistant, and estate manager. The open search marks another major difference between the Vanderpump shows — Vanderpump Rules followed people who, at the start of the series, had been working at SUR and Villa Blanca for years. This cast, it seems, will be meeting Vanderpump and each other for the first time when filming begins.

The casting application, however, does hint that there will be some familiarity among the staff. One of the nine questions on the form is: “Do you have a friend, significant other, or family member who you would love to work with? If yes, please provide their contact info and a brief explanation of why you think we should include them.”

Close friends or family members suddenly dropped into the pressure cooker that is a Vanderpump-run reality show in a foreign country with impossibly high expectations? The drama practically creates itself.

When does Vanderpump Villa premiere?

Based on the casting notice, the show hasn’t even started filming yet. It will likely be a while before Hulu announces a release date.

Brianna Wellen is a TV Reporter at Primetimer who became obsessed with television when her parents let her stay up late to watch E.R.