Homestead Rescue Lawsuit: What Happened? Why did Kim and Josh Zabec Sued?

Although reality programs commonly portray themselves as entirely unscripted, true, and authentic, this may not necessarily be the fact. Despite several of reality TV’s finest scenes not appearing to be genuine, there aren’t many times when audiences are given any indication of their authenticity.

Lawsuits filed against reality TV personalities and their programs often demonstrate that the boundary that separates what is genuine versus what is amplified for the lenses is unclear. The Discovery program “Homestead Rescue” enlightens Americans on how and where to effectively survive off the grid, a courtesy to Marty Raney and his two children, Misty Raney and Matt Raney.

The Homestead Rescue team attempts to assist folks who really are having difficulty making homesteading successful by educating people on essential survival techniques. However, after the Homestead Rescue lawsuit, some feel the program is entirely fictitious.

Homestead Rescue: About the Show

Born in 1957 in Alaska, USA, Marty Raney is the host and producer of Discovery’s reality program “Homestead Rescue.”

He is an American Alaskan adventurer who understands precisely how to live in the wild; he stars in “Homestead Rescue” alongside his grownup kids Misty Raney, 42, a farmer, and Matt Raney, 40, a fisherman and hunter.

Marty began working as a logger in the Alaskan woods in the 1970s, and he has reportedly remained on a homestead in the bitter cold. Aside from Misty and Matt, Marty’s family also consists of his wife, Mollee, and two other children, Miles and Melanee, who opt not to star in the show.

The Discovery’s reality show revolves around the three Raneys, who show America the way of living in the Alaskan wilderness. Their daily struggles and expedition throughout the wilds among wildlife predators and natural disasters are displayed on-screen on the very show.

The Homestead Rescue crew attempts to assist folks who really are having difficulty making homesteading successful by educating people on essential survival techniques. The adventure show first premiered on Discovery channel on 17th June 2016, and ever since, it has had a total of nine completed seasons and one ongoing.

Marty is also the producer of another Homestead Rescue spin-off show titled “Homestead Rescue: Raney Ranch,” which premiered on Discovery channel in October 2020.

Homestead Rescue: Lawsuit

The premise behind the program is that patriarch Marty, alongside two of his children, make trips across the nation to help folks who’ve always desired to live relatively peacefully far from civilization. Marty teaches these people how to care for themselves and use the environment to their favor as they travel.

The Raneys flew to Virginia in the very first season’s 2nd episode titled “Under Siege” to aid Kim and Josh Zabec, proprietors of Revolutionary Roots Farm, because pigs ruined a piece of their property.

The couple subsequently came out on social sites regarding their time when the Raney family aided them.

However, they later sued the reality show, saying they were invited to appear on a show about accomplished homesteaders rather than people in need of aid and that the show was far from reality.

They claimed they were being portrayed on the program as if they had no understanding of what they’d been performing with their farm.

According to sources, the show may incorporate certain fabricated pieces depending on the statement of a few of the series’s partners. Kim and Josh Zabec were skilled homesteaders who operated Revolutionary Roots Farm in the first season.

The Raneys traveled to their property to help them rebuild it for parts of it were destroyed by pigs. Kim and Josh, on the other hand, claimed that the program rendered them seem unskilled when, in fact, they themselves were veteran homesteaders.

Lawsuit Update and Outcome

Apparently, Kim and Josh initiated their Homestead Rescue lawsuit after claiming that the organizers had completely misled them. The couple alleged that producers assured them that they would be appearing on the program as experienced homesteaders.

Rather, the program portrayed them as very inexperienced homesteaders knowing not to do anything on their own farms. It is reported that the judge dismissed the case due to the lack of sufficient evidence to prove their claims.

Conclusion

Although the veracity of Homestead Rescue has indeed been questioned, there isn’t any denying that it is a really fascinating television series for people like me who preferred to live both in civilization as well as off the grid. Discovery’s “Homestead Rescue” is a program that you should watch if you’d like to know if it’s true or simply to learn about how farmers survive.