Total Divas is an Americanreality television series that aired from July 28, 2013, to December 10, 2019, onE! Television.[1][2] The series gave viewers an inside look into the lives of femaleWWE wrestlers from their work withinWWE to their personal lives with the inclusion of behind the scenes footage.[3][4][5][6] All nine seasons were later made available on WWE's on-demand streaming service,WWE Network, until its closure in 2024.[7]
In 2011, it was reported thatWWE had released a survey to gauge interest in original content intended for the newly announcedWWE Network. One of the prospective shows would be areality show that followed the lives of sixWWE Divas on the road, all living on the same tour bus that would also feature a 24/7 webcam for fans to unlock via password.[8]
In April 2013, an article onWWE.com stated: "WWE is contemplating a potential Divas reality show: It's a new reality series following the life and times of eight WWE Divas that lets viewers into the Divas locker room, behind the scenes on the road, and inside the personal lives of some of the most glitzy, gritty and glamorous celebrities in all of entertainment."[9] Fans were also asked to vote in a poll to help determine a name, with the six options including:WWE Divas Road Trip,Hot Wheels,Heels on Wheels.[10] The latter title,Heels on Wheels, was trademarked by WWE in 2011, and according to a 2019 interview with former WWE writer Brian Mann, was the original title for the series.[11][12]
Total Divas was revealed later in 2013, as a part of a partnership withE! andBunim/Murray.[13][14] The cast for the newly announced series consisted ofThe Bella Twins (Brie andNikki Bella),Naomi,Cameron,Natalya,Eva Marie, andJoJo.[15] It was announced on August 14, 2013, that E! had ordered an additional six episodes to the already eight episode first season, bringing the total episode number up to fourteen episodes.[16] The mid-season finale aired on September 15, 2013, with the season continuing on November 10, 2013.[17] WWE commentatorJosh Mathews revealed on November 20, 2013, thatTotal Divas had been renewed for a second season.[18][19] The second season premiered on March 16, 2014.[20]
On May 19, 2014, E! announced that the third season ofTotal Divas would premiere on September 7, 2014.[21] On February 24, 2015,Paige announcedTotal Divas was renewed for a fourth season, with filming commencing at the end of the month.[22] It was then announced at the end of season three, that the fourth season would premiere on July 7, 2015, moving from Sunday to Tuesday nights.[23] On April 1, 2015, E! announced the show had been renewed for a fourth season via a press release.[24] After the September 22 episode ofTotal Divas aired, it was announced that the following week's episode would serve as the season finale, rather than a mid-season finale.[25]
Season 5 was announced on October 6, 2015, and premiered on January 19, 2016.[26][27] Season 6 was officially confirmed on April 18, 2016, by the E! Network. Its premiered on November 16, 2016. Additionally, the E! Network announced that Brie and Nikki would be getting their own spin-off, also with a fall premiere date, titledTotal Bellas.[28][29]
On January 28, 2017, it was announced that Nikki Bella would serve as anexecutive producer of the show when the series returned in April 2017.[30] On September 20, 2017, E! revealed that the seventh season will premiere on November 1, 2017.[31] On May 7, 2018, E! and WWE announced thatTotal Divas had been renewed for its eighth and ninth seasons. Season 8 premiered on September 19, 2018. Season 9 and its final season premiered on October 1, 2019.[32][33]
In June 2021, Essentially Sports reported that the E! Network had quietly cancelledTotal Divas and its sister showTotal Bellas, citing low ratings and a lack of interest from those involved.[34]
In a 2021 interview,Cameron claimed thatVince McMahon handpicked the cast of thefirst season ofTotal Divas, which consisted ofThe Bella Twins (Brie andNikki Bella),Naomi, Cameron,Natalya,Eva Marie, andJoJo.[35]TJ Wilson, husband of Natalya, stated in 2023 that she was almost not part of the cast for the first season due to concerns over her traditional wrestling background. However, it was McMahon who decided that her background would be helpful for the audience, and thus casting her on the show.[36]Eve Torres stated in a 2016 interview with WWE'sWhere Are They Now?web series thatTriple H had offered her a role on the cast ofTotal Divas ahead of its first season, with her upcoming WWE departure being featured as a possible storyline. However, she declined the offer due to personal reasons.[37]
Eva Marie revealed that after being signed to WWE following a 2013WWE Diva Search that was not televised, she was asked to audition for the show that was still in development. Within 72 hours of auditioning, Marie was cast and sent toWrestleMania 29 to begin filming.[38] Fellow rookie JoJo was cast in the first season at the age of 19, leaving the show after the first season, being replaced bySummer Rae in thesecond.[39][40] During a 2017 Q&A to promote her book,Crazy Is My Superpower,AJ Lee revealed that she had declined an offer to replace JoJo and join the cast for the second season, objecting to the idea of presenting an inauthentic version of herself after being offered multiple storylines to choose from.[41][42]
During thethird season premiere,Rosa Mendes joined the cast, and was joined byPaige andAlicia Fox following the mid-season break.[43][44][45] Naomi and Summer Rae also left the cast during the second half of the season, with the formertweeting that it was not her decision.[46] Naomi returned to the cast during thefourth season, whereas Mendes and Cameron departed the series.[47] However, Naomi left the cast once again during itsfifth season, with Mendes returning andWWE Tough Enough runner-upMandy Rose joining the cast for the first time.[48]
Thesixth season featured three departures in Alicia Fox, Mandy Rose, and Rosa Mendes, with the trio being replaced by newcomersRenee Young,Lana, andMaryse, along with Naomi rejoining the cast as a series regular.[49] On June 9, 2017, it was reported thatAlexa Bliss andNia Jax would be joining theseventh season ofTotal Divas.[50][51] On June 10, 2017, Renee Young confirmed via Twitter that she would not be returning.[52] On June 29, 2017, it was reported thatCarmella would be joining the cast and that Paige had departed the show for the final time.[53]
On May 15, 2018, it was announced that Carmella would not be returning for the show'seighth season.[54] It was later revealed that Paige and Lana were also leaving the show. Lana later revealed in a 2019 interview that she was removed from the show because her storylines were "hated" by the E! demo following market research.[55] In April 2019, Brie and Nikki Bella announced that they would not be returning for theninth season ofTotal Divas, stating that they wanted to focus solely onTotal Bellas.[56] On August 26, 2019, it was revealed that Naomi, Natalya, and Nia Jax were set to return for season nine alongside Carmella, who was announced to be returning as a series regular, and new cast membersRonda Rousey andSonya Deville.[57] Additionally, Brie and Nikki Bella were reported to continue making guest appearances throughout the season.[58] The ninth season premiered on October 1, 2019.[59]
The series premiered on July 28, 2013, drawing 1.34 million viewers. It would remain the highest rated season premiere throughout its run.[65] The highest rated episode of the series was "Planet Funk is Funked Up" during the first season, garnering 1.67 million viewers.[66] The lowest rated episode of the series was "MountainMania" during the ninth season, which only garnered a 0.19 in the ratings.[67] The season two premiere episode "New Diva On The Block" received 1.07 million viewers.[68] The following episode "The Braniel Bus" had a strong rise in viewers garnering 1.28 million viewers.[69] The season three premiere attracted over 1.2 million viewers and 821K Adults 18–49, the series was up +15% and +17% respectively versus the season 2 premiere, as well as garnered 26,000 tweets and ranked as the #1 ad-supported cable program of the night. The third-season premiere ofTotal Divas outdrew the previous season's opener.[70][71] The ninth season premiere episode pulled in a 0.25 rating, with the finale garnering a 0.22.[72] This resulted in the cancellation of the show.
Tom Conroy ofMedia Life Magazine found the premiere "not very interesting", adding that it "feels real-ish" but "if the stars are doing any damage to their reputations, it's that they appear to be too nice. That might make their fans happy, but viewers expecting a smackdown can and will go elsewhere."[73] Diva-Dirt.com stated "Meet Your New Guilty Pleasure!".[74] Eric Gargiulo of Camel Clutch Blog said "I tuned in toWWETotal Divas expecting to see a scripted reality show in the vein ofHogan Knows Best. Instead I got an interesting look behind the scenes of the WWE and its superstars more in the same vein asBeyond the Mat."[75]
Total Divas is attributed with growing the female audience demographic for WWE. In a 2020 interview,Stephanie McMahon stated: "We saw an increase in our female audience in different platforms and different channels. [...] The 40 per cent stayed for our core programming, butTotal Divas andTotal Bellas, the female viewership went through the roof. On YouTube, on social media, our female viewership increased."[76]
The show is credited with playing a role within theDivas Revolution, which resulted in more TV time for the female talent, deeper storylines, and the retirement of the "Divas" branding, instead being referring to female wrestlers as "Superstars" like the men.[77] Scarlett Harris wrote forDigital Spy in 2019: "a legion of new women's wrestling fans will be watchingEvolution, thanks in no small part to the pop cultural cachet ofTotal Divas. Whether wrestling purists like it or not,Total Divas is a cornerstone in the women's wrestling evolution."[78]
In 2023, Nikki Bella reflected on the backlash the show received from within the wrestling industry: "Total Divas should have been praised even more, I felt, because what we were doing was we literally were at the point of almost beating theKardashians in the ratings. [...] We could have had the industry behind us, but instead they used it to turn it against us."[79]
^Eric G. (July 31, 2013)."WWE Total Divas Show Review".Camel Clutch. United States:Blogger. Archived from the original on December 3, 2013. RetrievedNovember 28, 2013.
