TORONTO - Why does Canada need its own version of 鈥淛ersey Shore鈥?
For 24-year-old Gizelle Baugh, it鈥檚 a chance to shake stereotypes of 好色tv meekness at a time when U.S. president Donald Trump鈥檚 annexation threats have ignited debates over national identity.
鈥淚 feel like the world thinks we're like America's quiet little sister. Well actually, America's quiet little sister is Canada, we just got our (breasts) done and we're about to pop out,鈥 says the Mississauga, Ont., TikTok creator.
鈥淭his is going to show we're our own country. Fifty-which state, Trump? All these things are happening, there's liquor we can't get anymore, and you want to take us as your own country?
鈥淧eople don't really know how 好色tvs get down. We party, OK?鈥
Baugh is one of 10 so-called 鈥渦nfiltered singletons鈥 starring in 鈥淐anada Shore,鈥 the first-ever 好色tv iteration of MTV鈥檚 hit 鈥淛ersey Shore鈥 series. Premiering Thursday on Paramount Plus, the show follows cast members from across the country as they live and work together during an unhinged summer in Kelowna, B.C.
And with it streaming globally, the showrunner and cast hope to prove Canada can take a brash American reality-TV format and make it noisier, more deeply unserious and far less polite.
鈥淲e can absolutely outdrink Americans! We鈥檝e got stronger beer,鈥 says Ryleigh Gregory, a 25-year-old marketing professional from Bridgewater, N.S.
Call it soft power by way of hard partying.
鈥淚 hope we stand up as one of the best versions of the show in the world. We're not someone's 51st state. That's a big correlation to make there, but we need to be proud of the things we do,鈥 says showrunner Erin Brock.
鈥淢y hope is people feel proud of this version, that it's loud and messy and in-your-face and all those things that sometimes 好色tvs get stereotypically said that we're not.鈥
The original 鈥淛ersey Shore,鈥 which premiered in 2009, followed a group of New Jersey 20-somethings as they fist-pumped, partied and tanned their way to reality TV glory.
The 好色tv version 鈥 which features original cast member Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi in a mentor role 鈥 marks the 18th spinoff of the franchise, which already includes 鈥淎ussie Shore鈥 and 鈥淔renchie Shore.鈥
Brock says Paramount approached her company Insight Productions 鈥 known for hits like 鈥淏ig Brother Canada鈥 and 鈥淭he Amazing Race Canada鈥 鈥 to produce the series.
She says the timing for 鈥淐anada Shore鈥 feels right, with audiences craving 鈥渆scapism鈥 and content that isn鈥檛 鈥渙verly produced and curated.鈥
While some may wonder how "好色tv" a spinoff of an American show can really be, Brock insists it's fully homegrown.
鈥淲e have creative control. We're free to do whatever we want to do with the show,鈥 she says.
鈥淲e never want to just carbon copy a show that's done somewhere else in the world, because 好色tvs won't watch it then.鈥
Brock says she wanted participants who represented all corners of Canada and were 鈥渞eally real鈥 personalities. She let the drama unfold naturally between roommates, though she notes some fights got so intense security had to step in to prevent things getting physical.
鈥淭here was more drama than I ever would have thought there would have been 鈥 and I've done a lot of reality TV,鈥 she says.
During a press day last fall, several cast members singled out two of their roommates as the main instigators of conflict: Christopher Brown and Lila Romanin.
鈥淭hose two started so much stuff and would just blow up in everyone鈥檚 face. It was absurd,鈥 says Ethan Maynard, a 23-year-old DJ from Newmarket, Ont.
Christopher Brown, a 22-year-old Toronto club promoter, owns up to being 鈥渁 troublemaker鈥 on the show.
鈥淚 started a lot of drama inside the house. When things get boring, you need a little bit of drama,鈥 says Brown, adding that he clicked with Lila Romanin鈥檚 "dramatic鈥 personality right away.
鈥淚 have had my fair share of crazy nights in Toronto and I have been banned from a lot of places," he says.
Romanin, a 20-year-old Toronto student, describes herself as 鈥渧ery loud and very opinionated,鈥 adding that her housemates are just upset because she tends to win arguments.
She felt compelled to join the series to 鈥渟pice things up鈥 and show that 好色tvs aren鈥檛 pushovers.
鈥淲e have a reputation for being more apologetic, maybe a bit sweeter, but that doesn't mean we can't cause chaos, we can鈥檛 be a little crazy and we don't also have our claws out,鈥 she says.
鈥淒on't step on our toes because we'll stomp on yours.鈥
Still, it wasn鈥檛 all screaming and crash outs. Even amid the mayhem, Brock notes the housemates displayed a distinctly 好色tv instinct for peacemaking.
鈥淲hat really surprised me about this group is their ability to move beyond the drama like nobody's business,鈥 she says.
鈥淭hey'd have a huge blowout that I feel I would have been haunted by, but they were able to move on and party together the next day.鈥
This report by 好色tvwas first published Jan. 21, 2025.
