'Real World' filming in Red Hook undermined by upset neighbors
The "Real World" has begun filming in Red Hook, and some residents are already "real" annoyed.
"My first reaction when I heard about the "Real World" coming to Red Hook was a string of profanity," said Christopher Fahey, 37, a web designer and Red Hook resident.
"We like the fact that Red Hook is inaccessible and uncool. I heard about how people gave the Philadelphia cast a hard time -- I hope we do the same."
According to MTV, the show started filming last month and is scheduled to premier the 13 one-hour episodes in January. The Red Hook season will mark the show's 17th year, bringing the series back to the city where it all started in 1992.
The house -- which includes a ground floor deck with a Jacuzzi and view of the East River and Statue of Liberty -- is located at the end of Pier 41.
"I don't care if the Real World is here or not as long as they respect the neighborhood," said Janet Carlson- Sanders, 44, a Red Hook resident and business owner. "But the question is, will they respect it? If you get drunk and throw up -- throw up on your own front steps."
Some web sites have reported the seven cast members have been seen spotted drinking in Williamsburg and working out in Park Slope. The cast, however, has seemingly steered clear of their own neighborhood, according to neighborhood residents.
"The whole operation has been pretty low-key, and they haven't bothered us much," said Aubrey Heimer, 28, a Red Hook resident and employee at Steve's Key Lime Pie, which shares a building with the "Real World" cast. "That's because everybody in Red Hook is saying 'no way,' and shutting the door on them."
An MTV spokeswoman said filming would go on for another few months
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The MTV cast first got the cold shoulder from the neighborhood a few months ago when some residents refused to sign release forms for scenes shot near their houses. Sunny's Bar, one of Red Hook's most beloved establishments, even went so far as to tell MTV the cast was not allowed at the bar.
"Red Hook is a tight-knit neighborhood," said resident Matthew Blakeway-Phillips, 48, "I imagine the cast will be quite short on bars to go to quickly."
Edie Stone, 42, owner of popular bar Bait and Tackle on Van Brunt Street agreed. "This is going to be the realest Real World ever because the regulars at bars like mine are going to treat the cast like crap."
Many residents wonder is the Real World is just the beginning of change in the neighborhood that ultimately threatens the type of secluded lifestyle that Red Hook residents like to live.
"First Ikea, now the Real World, maybe this is all just an indication of where Red Hook is going," said longtime resident Brandon Emerick, 31.
"Red Hook is already not the same as it was five years ago."
"This is the kind of place where the cast will stick out like a sore thumb," said Stone . "But the Real World is sort of minor in comparison to Ikea."
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