“Vanderpump Rules” producer Evolution Media won a round in court when a judge ruled that an arbitrator rather than a jury will determine the validity of the fate of a former recurring cast member’s lawsuit allegations that she endured racial remarks and other abuses while on the show.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Thomas D. Long, in a Thursday ruling, put plaintiff Faith Stowers’ case on hold pending the outcome of the arbitration and scheduled a status conference for Jan. 30, 2026.
Among the allegations in her lawsuit, Stowers contends that fellow cast member Lala Kent brandished a knife at her during an argument in Season 4 and placed it at the plaintiff’s neck.
Stowers also alleges that the executive producer of the series discouraged her from reporting Kent to the police and that Lisa Vanderpump, the show’s star and one of its executive producers, warned her that she would be fired if the plaintiff could not make amends with Kent.
Evolution Media lawyers previously filed court papers with Long seeking to compel arbitration of the plaintiff’s claims against Evolution based on her employment agreement and NBCUniversal Media LLC and Bravo Media LLC later joined in the motion. Cable network Bravo is owned by the NBCUniversal Media Group division of Comcast’s NBCUniversal.
“While Evolution is the named signatory to the agreements, the arbitration agreements are equally enforceable by NBCU and Bravo based on their express terms…,” the networks’ lawyers argued in their court papers.
While not conceding that any of Stowers’ allegations are true, NBCU and Bravo attorneys said the allegations against them were “without distinction” from those against Evolution.
In his ruling, the judge said the defendants had convinced him an arbitration agreement existed and that it was not unduly one-sided in favor of them and against Stowers.
“In sum, the plaintiff has not shown only slight procedural unconscionability, but no substantive unconscionability and the arbitration agreement should not be invalidated,” Long wrote.
“Vanderpump Rules” is an Emmy-nominated alternative television series produced by Evolution that has aired on Bravo since 2013. The program focuses around Vanderpump, a television personality and restaurateur, and showcases the real lives, dramas and romances of some of the servers in her restaurants.
“When racial inequities rocketed into the public consciousness following George Floyd’s murder, NBC and Evolution started facing backlash for their mistreatment of Stowers,” the suit filed last April 5 states. “In an astonishingly cynical act of performative allyship, they belatedly terminated several cast members for behavior they had long known about. At no point did they ever reach out to Stowers herself.”
Stowers appeared on “Vanderpump Rules” as a recurring cast member in 2015 and a guest in 2016-17 and signed three arbitration agreements involving all three defendants, according to the Evolution Media attorneys’ court papers.
“Plaintiff’s complaint alleges no invalidity in the arbitration clause and offers no reason why it does not apply,” Evolution’s attorneys argue in their court papers. “The court should compel Stowers to arbitrate her claims and stay this action pending the conclusion of arbitration.”
Stowers, a server, appeared on the show in Season 4, but was not invited back for Season 5, the Evolution attorneys stated in their court papers.
However, shortly before the start of Season 6, rumors circulated that Stowers had an affair with another cast member, Jax Taylor, while he was dating someone else and she was invited to appear on the show for two episodes to give her side of the story, the Evolution lawyers further stated in their court papers.
One of Stowers’ attorneys is Bryan J. Freedman, who also represents actor Justin Baldoni as well members of the Menendez brothers family who favor their release from prison.