Oh My Lord, Sweet Baby Jesus! Variety’s 30 Most Powerful Women on Reality TV in 2024

“The Real Housewives of Miami,” Bravo
Throughout Season 6 of the show, Abraira faced the unimaginable, having been diagnosed with breast cancer. It would have been a good excuse to quit, actually, but Abraira persisted with grace, elevating the season to greatness.

“The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City,” Bravo
Hello, baby gorgeous! Barlow manages to fight with seemingly all of her castmates, all while keeping a smile on her face. We’re, in fact, shaking, we’re physically shaking. (It’s hard not to quote Lisa when writing about Lisa.)

“The Real Housewives of Orange County,” Bravo
After getting a DUI in fall 2023, Beador’s employment on Bravo was tenuous. But not only did she return for Season 18 of “Orange County,” she went on to have her best season ever, and squared off against friends (her erstwhile BFF Tamra Judge) and foes (Alexis Bellino, her ex-boyfriend’s new girlfriend) alike.

“The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” Bravo
If being on the “Housewives” can cause cast members to occasionally lose their dignity, Beauvais defies that axiom. Now in her fifth season on the show, Beauvais manages to both stir the pot and rise above it — a rare skill. She’s also used the Bravo platform to establish a partnership with Lifetime as a producer and actor.

“The Real Housewives of Potomac,” Bravo
After an off year, “Potomac” is back, baby — and Bryant understood her part of the assignment to bring back the shade in order to restore this corner of the “Real Housewives” universe to its former glory. An activated Bryant is something to see, and fellow castmate Mia Thornton has been setting her off, to the delight of viewers.

“The Traitors,” Peacock
It’s been more than two decades since Cannatella made her debut on 2002’s “The Real World: Las Vegas,” then went on to compete on multiple seasons of “The Challenge.” But this year, she proved she had exactly the right amount of conniving to take home the win on Season 2 of “The Traitors.”

“The Valley,” Bravo
If you had told us during Cartwright’s “Vanderpump Rules” days that we’d be singing her praises, we would have called you a liar. Yet here we are, saying that Cartwright standing up to her toxic husband Jax Taylor, whom she’s now divorcing, has us cheering her on from the sidelines. Go, Brittany, go!

“The Real Housewives New Jersey,” Bravo
In truth, the “New Jersey” portion of the Bravoverse is in shambles, and Bravo will be retooling the series. But Catania somehow emerged triumphant out of the Meadowlands swamp once again, using her preternatural charm to be friendly with all her castmates. How does she do it!?

“America’s Sweethearts: Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders,” Netflix
The current director of the Dallas Cowboys Cheerleaders, Finglass was one of many breakout women on “America’s Sweethearts,” as the mentor and coach to some of the hardest working athletes in the business. Finglass managed to be supportive in a cutthroat environment.

“OMG Fashun,” E!
Known for her downtown style — as well as her breakout performance in “Uncut Gems” — Fox managed to turn her glamorous, winking social media presence into “OMG Fashun.” On the reality competition, Fox appeared as both host and judge, alongside Law Roach, and contestants used unconventional materials (like trash!) to design clothes.

“Crime Scene Kitchen,” Fox
Serving as a judge for all three seasons of Fox’s “Crime Scene Kitchen,” the star cake artist had founded the “How to Cake It” YouTube channel in 2014, showcasing how to make cakes that look like different objects. This year, she also served as a judge on Buddy Valastro’s “CakeToppers” on Hulu.

“Love Is Blind,” Netflix
During Season 7 of the Kinetic Content-produced reality sensation, George made headlines by putting herself 100% into her relationship, having honest conversations about her military history and her feelings around birth control. Her journey ended in heartbreak after she was blindsided with a breakup days before the wedding.

“Jersey Shore: Family Vacation,” MTV
“Sammi Sweetheart,” the only original “Jersey Shore” cast member to skip the 2018 revival, finally returned to “Family Vacation,” reuniting with her co-stars for the MTV series and coming face-to-face with estranged boyfriend, Ronnie Ortiz-Magro. She was a complete trooper when her castmates went all in with the jokes about the infamous “note,” too.

“The Great British Baking Show,” Netflix
Since joining the show in 2023, Hammond has shone with the combination of her warm demeanor and authenticity. Connecting to both contestants and viewers, it’s no surprise she also became the presenter for “For the Love of Dogs” this year following Paul O’Grady’s death.

“So You Think You Can Dance,” Fox
The professional dancer, who got her start on “So You Think You Can Dance” in 2002, has been a mainstay on reality TV for two decades. This year, following the death of Holker’s husband and “SYTYCD” main judge, Stephen “tWitch” Boss, she joined the show as a judge.

“Summer House,” Bravo
Watching Hubbard’s turbulent, doomed relationship with her (now ex-) fiancé Carl Radke made Season 8 of “Summer House” must-see-TV earlier this year. Then, after Carl broke up with her on camera in the finale, what did she do? She found a new man, got pregnant and filmed over the summer for the show’s upcoming ninth season.

“Top Chef,” Bravo
Former “Top Chef” winner Kish had big shoes to fill when she became the host of Bravo’s Emmy-winning cooking competition after Padma Lakshmi decided to step down before its 21st season. But in this year’s “Top Chef: Wisconsin,” Kish fit in seamlessly with judges Tom Colicchio and Gail Simmons, and we’ll soon see the group exploring fine dining in Canada.

“Rock the Block,” HGTV
The twins, the hosts and design experts behind HGTV’s “Unsellable Houses” since 2019, won Season 5 of “Rock the Block,” beating out three returning teams fighting for redemption. Their secret: knowing that solar panels may not add curb appeal but definitely add value. Twin win!

“Vanderpump Rules”/“Love Island,” Bravo/Peacock
Now that Bravo has decided to start over with “Vanderpump Rules,” recasting the show from scratch for an eventual 12th season, it’s become clear who the winners among the show’s OG cast were — and no one won more than Madix. Her turn as the “Love Island” host propelled the dating show to become a viral sensation over the summer.

“House of Villains,” E!
A two-time runner-up from “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” Muse has won the hearts of “House of Villains” viewers with her charisma and fearless messiness. Her talents have found the exact right medium here, and to Kandy we say, “Sashay, you stay.”

“The Masked Singer,” Fox
After five seasons as a panelist for the U.K. version of “The Masked Singer,” Ora joined the U.S. version for Seasons 11 and 12. Plus, she sometimes hopped on stage to perform herself. Ora was previously a coach on “The Voice U.K.” and “The Voice Australia.”

“The Traitors”/”Married to Medicine”/”Dancing With the Stars,” Peacock/Bravo/ABC
Parks may not have won “The Traitors,” but… she won “The Traitors.” A cast member on Bravo’s “Married to Medicine” for the last two seasons, she also competed on “Dancing With the Stars” this year. Plus, she just filmed Season 16 of “Real Housewives of Atlanta,” her first season since her 2017 ouster.

“The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives,” Hulu
These chaotic, Utah-based momfluencers — who knew what joy they could bring us? Central to the mess was Paul, who was arrested for domestic violence in an incident with her boyfriend, then spent the rest of the season pregnant with his baby.

“Survivor,” CBS
While her strategy at tribal council shocked many — she told the jury, “I’m not going to say I drove a vote” — Petty proved that kindness went a long way and was named the sole survivor of Season 46. In fact, she only received one vote all season long.

“The Challenge,” MTV
One of the strongest ever to play the game, the “Road Rules” alumni returned to the flagship series for her first “Challenge” since 2012. Now a mother of three, Robinson became the final player standing on her team of “Eras 1” — and outlasted most of her competition — on the historic 40th season.

“Selling Sunset,” Netflix
Stause has been a “Selling Sunset” staple since joining the Oppenheim Group in Season 1 in 2019. Season 8 brought a great deal of drama, which only continued when the season wrapped. In addition to creating fun TV, Stause always has BFF Emma Hernan’s back, even when it seems no one else does. In 2025, she’ll compete on Season 3 of “The Traitors.”

“The Bachelor,” “The Bachelorette,” “Dancing With the Stars,” ABC
In January 2024, Tran was the breakout star of Season 28 of “The Bachelor.” Then she became “The Bachelorette” and was briefly engaged; hours after a very public split on “After the Final Rose,” she flew to New York and joined “Dancing With the Stars,” becoming a Season 33 fan favorite.

“The Golden Bachelorette,” ABC
One of the most beloved women on “The Golden Bachelor,” Vassos had to leave for a family emergency. This year, she received her well-deserved spotlight on the first season of the spinoff, “The Golden Bachelorette.” She also got her happy ending, getting engaged to Chock Chapple during the finale.

“Married to Medicine,” Bravo
Now in Season 11, the Georgia-based doctors of “Married to Medicine” have inadvertently ended up at the center of the war on abortion. And OBGYN Dr. Simone — a cast member since the show’s beginning — has taken on that responsibility fearlessly.

“Below Deck Mediterranean,” Bravo
The yacht captain on “Mediterranean” since Season 2, Yawn is known for her perfectionism. In the show’s Season 9 finale, Captain Sandy proposed to her girlfriend, gospel singer (!!!) Leah Shafer, whom she married in May.