VH1 has greenlit a reality series about the denizens of Aspen, Colo., the moneyed resort town that attracts the rich and famous during the winter ski season.
The network has not settled on the number of episodes of the untitled series, which is targeted to debut early next year.
The show will follow residents on both ends of the social and economic divide, mining the tension between the haves and the have-nots, those who work the service jobs catering to the wealthy vacationers who arrive each winter to swell the tiny town’s population from 5,000 to 40,000 at its peak.
The series has been in development for several months: producers held casting calls at various local hot spots last winter. And while it may seem at first blush to fit the leitmotif of the rich-behaving-badly epitomized by Bravo’s Real Housewives franchise, according to a network representative, it is more akin to The Hills, which airs on VH1’s sister network MTV.
The Aspen show will join VH1 reality offerings including the New York franchise, Tool Academy and Brett Michaels’ Rock of Love.
The Aspen show is from High Noon Entertainment and KMW Productions. Jim Berger and Pamela Healey are executive producers for High Noon and Ken Weinstock and Brett Weinstock are executive producers for KMW. Jill Holmes, Noah Pollack, Alex Demyanenko and Jeff Olde are executive producers for VH1.
