Whitney Sudler-Smith is pulling back the curtain on the early days of Southern Charm.
In a candid conversation with executive producer Simonette Rossi (which you can watch in the above video — a BravoTV.com exclusive!), Whitney remembered how a chance encounter with Thomas Ravenel inspired him to start filming a show about their charmed life in Charleston, South Carolina. "Her crazy real estate agent said, 'You should meet this guy named T. Rav.' I'm like, 'Is he a rapper or something?'" Whitney recalled.
The two men met up and Whitney saw firsthand just how "crazy and compelling" the real estate agent and former politician was.
"I said, 'Hey, let's get a crew down here and film him. There's something here, I don't know if it's a TV show or documentary or whatever,'" Whitney shared. "And that was the germination of Southern Charm."
Ten Seasons later and Southern Charm is still going strong, much to the surprise of his mother, Patricia Altschul. "I really never thought that he was going to do something on reality TV with a bunch of sizzle nuts," she said.
Patricia also truly never expected to end up being a reality TV figure herself. The producers asked her to join multiple times, and though she initially said no, Whitney said, "I talked her into it and she clearly comported herself. She's much better at this than I am."
"I think it's fun. I mean, I don't ever stress. I just say whatever pops into my head. And I'm unfiltered," Patricia said.
What makes Southern Charm work, according to Whitney and Patricia
Throughout the show's 10 seasons, the cast has changed but people like Shep Rose, Austen Kroll, and Craig Conover have long been mainstays. These men, according to Patricia, are the cast members that keep the show so entertaining.
"It's different than any other reality show. The women come and go, but it's really about the men. They're the southern version of Housewives," she declared.
Whitney, however, credits cast members like Ashley Jacobs for making "riveting television" that kept viewers coming back.
"It's amazing. We've been quite lucky, too. Just when you think someone is played out or a storyline is dead or something, something f-----g insane or somebody comes up from out of the darkness," he remembered, adding, "Like Season 5, when we were getting stale, suddenly, out of nowhere comes Ashley."
There's also, of course, the contributions of Kathryn Dennis, who was an official cast members from Seasons 2 through 8.
Whitney and Patricia's favorite moments from Southern Charm
While there are plenty of moments to pick from, Whitney and Patricia said one of their favorite scenes from the show was the dog wedding in Season 8. The ceremony saw Patricia's dog, Peaches, and Shep's dog, Lil Craig, come together in holy matrimony.
"I knew that if I had enough champagne and threw all these characters together, that there would be drama," Patricia said.
Of course, that can be said about the rest of the series, which has featured many highs and lows over its 10 seasons. "It's something to be proud of. Quite an achievement," Whitney shared.
