MTV greenlit a third season of its drama/reality (or “dramality”) hybrid Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County. The show, which chronicles real teens but is shot to look like a scripted drama, has been a high performer for MTV this year. Its first season spawned a successful DVD, with more than 300,000 units sold to date.
Last week’s most viewed episode – Sept. 26 at 10 p.m. – pulled in 2.85 million viewers, significantly better than MTV’s third quarter average in prime (1.16 million). The new season will premiere next year.
The network also greenlit a new dramality from Laguna’s creator Liz Gateley. 8th & Ocean is an inside look at aspiring models in South Beach, Florida. MTV had announced a pilot for the series in June. It is slated for a first-quarter 2006 premiere. Gateley will executive produce along with Tony DiSanto, Andrew Hoegl and Jonathan Singer.
