Reality TV’s youngest creator is from the Palmetto State

Tyler Ryan speaks with The Men of West Hollywood's Creator and Executive Producer Hali Anastopoulo about the show

CHARLESTON SC (WOLO) — It was about thirty years ago, when MTV “picked seven strangers to live in a house, and have their lives taped” that the reality television genre really became “a thing.”  Fast-forward a few decades, and it is one of the most popular things to watch on TV, with nearly every network putting people together in a house, walking around naked, working on boats, enjoying the Low Country and anything else that we sit back and watch for hours at a time.

Figuring out the formula, for a seasoned television executive, isn’t exactly that hard…but for the Creator and Executive Producer of the new show The Men of West Hollywood, the road was a bit different.

Most people in South Carolina, and well beyond, have heard the name Anastopoulo, after all, its associated with a very successful law practice based in Charleston…we have all seen the ads…and  the syndicated judge show Eye for an Eye, hosted by the namesake, Akim Anastopoulo.  While the last name may familiar, the first name is the one making waves in Hollywood.

At nineteen, Hali Anastopoulo decided she wanted to create and tell stories, so she moved to where these things happen…Hollywood…and with an idea for a show, she set about finding funding, a crew, casting, producing, and ultimately selling a reality show to Crackle.

The show, The Men of West Hollywood, follows the stories of a group of friends, or at least associates, through their wild ride living in the place that dreams come true, Los Angles.

“A lot of the guys knew each other, or had past friendships, or past issues, that we were able to pull from to create the show,” Anastopoulo said of the cast.

The show was shot over the last couple years, and the long task of producing and following the story lines of the cast began, before ultimately selling the show to Crackle, where it debuted on January 20.

Anastopoulo said that although she is in “Men of West Hollywood mode,” with the focus on her new show, there are others in the works, including a reality show based on the white hot, and often dramatic real estate industry in Charleston.

You can learn more about Anastopoulo and her production company,  Get Me Out Productions, HERE.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Tyler Ryan is an award winning television and radio personality, writer, investigative journalist, and professional emcee.  He appears daily on ABC Columbia’s Good Morning Columbia, as well as hosting the syndicated radio program Carolina Cares on the South Carolina Radio Network, and the iHeart Radio Network.  Tyler also regularly appears as a criminal expert and journalist on regional and national crime based programs like Snapped and Killer Couples.  You can contact him directly via EMAIL Or on the socials: Tyler’s Instagram  // Tyler’s Facebook