Scripted or Unscripted? Fans Can't Figure Out If 'Alaskan Bush People' Is Real or Fake

Alaskan Bush People is a popular reality TV series that follows the ever-so-popular Brown family, who live an unconventional life in the wilderness away from society (they claim they've been doing so for 30 years). But since the plotline and ways of life portrayed by the parents and their seven kids in every episode is a little bit weird for lack of a better word, it's inevitable that fans are wondering if the show is fake. So, is Alaskan Bush People scripted? Find out everything we know here!

Although Alaskan Bush People markets itself as an unscripted reality show, the series has faced a lot of criticism over the years for being fake or scripted. I mean, can you blame them? 

Billy Brown, the patriarch of the family, once denied the rumors that the show isn't legit, however. "What can you say to people like that?" he told Radar Online. "We call them ‘bobs in the basement.’ That’s just what we call the people who sit behind the computers and don’t have a life. I actually feel sorry for those people when they don’t have anything else to do."

There is a slew of reasons why viewers are doubting the show. For starters, a lot has changed since the show's first season in 2014. For example, the family acts like they are rid of any technology, but in the show, you'll see them using vehicles... and many of them are on social media!

In addition, they've changed their home quite a few times even though Billy has claimed his kids were "born and raised in the wild". The show kicked off in Hoonah, Alaska, but they now live in Okanogan County, Washington. There were also reports in 2017 that the Brown family was living in an LA mansion amid Ami's cancer battle.

It was also rumored in 2016 that the Browns were living in a cozy Alaskan hotel in-between filming. "All of the boys have their own rooms," a neighbor told Radar at the time. That doesn't really sound like the wilderness to us.

Although the show is bizarre and definitely questionable, there's something about the Brown clan and their way of living that has viewers continually coming back for more.

"Alaskan Bush People’s entire premise was blown up long ago and the Browns’ Bush lifestyle has been exposed as an illusion, yet the show still draws enough eyeballs to warrant another season. The viewers with a casual interest in the show have probably ditched it by now, leaving only the most vehement hate-watchers and spellbound superfans keeping the lights on at Park Slope,” a TV Insider recap once said.

Alaskan Bush People premiered its first season back in 2014. The show is currently in its 14th season with brand new episodes airing on Sundays at 8 p.m. on Discovery Channel.