Entertainment

Her Reality Series Is Actually Worth Watching

by Laura Rosenfeld

Star on a sitcom: check. Guest judge a reality competition: check. Grab headlines for your affiliation with the Church of Scientology: check. Leah Remini has basically accomplished every goal of a modern-day celebrity... except starring in her own reality show. Well, that's all about to change when her new TLC reality series Leah Remini: It's All Relative premieres Thursday, July 10.

You probably best remember Remini as Kevin James' wife on the sitcom King of Queens, and the ball-busting attitude this Brooklyn native brought to her character Carrie wasn't really an act. Remini is really that funny and sassy in real life. Case and point: her guest spot on RuPaul's Drag Race earlier this year, when she wasn't afraid to lay down some truth bombs to the contestants and called her good friend and judge Michelle Visage "a nasty bitch." Best. Deliberation. Ever.

You also probably heard about Remini's very public exit from the Church of Scientology in June 2013. A year later, she is still coping with it, and the premiere of her show will feature a party where Remini has invited everyone who supported her during the difficult time. Remini told Lara Spencer on Good Morning America, "we should start celebrating what we have, and that's why we had the party."

But if Remini isn't enough for you, though I don't know why she wouldn't be, you're in luck because we're going to get the whole kit and caboodle. In the spirit of The Osbournes, Run's House, and Keeping Up With the Kardashians, Leah Remini: It's All Relative will not only follow Remini's life in show biz, but it will also introduce us to the actress's whole family. We'll get to see Remini ride in a horse-drawn carriage through Manhattan with her husband of 10 years, actor Angelo Pagan, and her 9-year-old daughter Sofia. It also looks like there will be some loving bickering between Remini and her mother Vicki, which may or may not involve Remini trying to prevent her mom from getting a tattoo. Remini's stepfather and Sofia's British nanny will also make appearances, in addition to her sister and brother-in-law, who speak a secret language to each other that rubs Remini the wrong way.

Wacky-yet-lovable families are the name of the game as far as TLC reality shows are concerned, and the channel is pretty much hitting us over the head with how just how wacky Remini's family is in the marketing for the show. Remini is a celebrity who seems to keep it real on and off screen, so hopefully she brings her likable and relatable personality to this new series. What's a reality show without people showing their true colors anyway?