Religious Weddings a thing of the past?

[Penncress]

One thing I also noticed when we compare all the old weddings from the glory days of B&B is that the weddings were religious ceremonies. They had clergy and were in churches occasionally. Now we just have Carter slapping together a "get-together" in somebody's home. Ho-hum, just another wedding filled with empty promises nobody plans to keep.

Boy this show has really changed.

[Xyla]

I noticed that, too. The big location weddings sometimes have ministers or priests officiating, but otherwise, it's always just Carter, which is convenient, since he can handle the annulment or divorce, too. I'm guessing he's asked to officiate as often as he is for precisely that reason--he offers a package deal.

[YDoIStillWatch]

I was thinking poor Carter, during the Australia wedding. Only good for at home, on the fly, probably won't last so let's get the Carter package deal, weddings. Lol.

[catmommy9]

I'm sure it has to do with the show needing to cut corners financially. All the recent weddings (or non-weddings, in the case of Thomas/Zoe) have taken place at Eric's mansion. A set that already exists and is used regularly. And since Lawrence Saint-Victor (Carter) is on the show's payroll, they don't have to pay another actor to play a priest/minister/other religious officiant. The biggest cost for these wedding are probably the dresses for the brides, the men all wear tuxes and the costume department probably has them in various sizes for the male cast members. For the Thomas/Zoe non-wedding, they had to buy two wedding dresses, because Thomas designed one for Zoe and one for Hope.

I wonder if cost is why we don't see the big splashy fashion shows anymore. Forrester is supposed to be couture, and that costs money, you can't buy it off the rack at TJ Maxx or Marshall's.

[Ella Munroe]

In 2016, they brought in guest stars to play ministers: Chaz Bono was the pastor at Steffy and Wyatt's wedding and Perez Hilton played the officiant at Quinn and Eric's wedding. I think the last pastor they had on was the one who married Steffy and Liam in Australia.

From then on, it's been living room weddings officiated by Carter. I don't know what the show is doing. Those large estates have extensive grounds. They could have the weddings outside.

[taramartin]

It was a pleasure to see an actual clergyman. All of the soaps have downgraded their weddings because of budget but it wouldn't cost much to have dayplayer for a wedding. Many just have a friend or relative become authorized to perform a wedding on the Internet, the crowd will act touched - to me it just makes for a fakey wedding - too bad this happens IRL sometimes too.

[tappinkat]

I wouldn't be surprised that it's not just for budget reasons. Bringing in religion, God, sacraments would imply that these marriages should be lasting "til death do you part." Hard to watch a serious wedding like that when we all know Bell is probably not going to give the marriage a full year to last.

[thecourt99]

It's budgets more than anything. The budgets for hiring the extras that will have lines (minister), and the location (church). Much cheaper to film in an existing set (the Forrester Mansion), and use an existing recurring character.

[Belindaa]

I agree. The budget is responsible for the cheap weddings and a lot of other problems on the show.

[ILoveBizzie]

Jacob Young said Brad Bell has money but he’s tight with it because he’s worried about the state of soaps these days. They are a dying breed, that’s for sure.

[thecourt99]

I'm sure that Brad Bell has the money, but I agree with him not spending it. They have more money than most of the remaining soaps due to the international licensing, but still soaps are in a precarious position. Also, if the past is any indication, then viewers may not return after so many days of not watching them.

[SharikaC]

Has the show ever had a church wedding? Other than the destination weddings, most of the weddings I saw took placed in Eric's living room. There was Katie/Bill's first wedding near her childhood home.

[Penncress]

Yes, I know that Ridge and Taylor got married in a beautiful church. Look it up on Youtube, it was exquisite.

[viennagirl]

often the "church" setting still looked as if it might be a film setting (not a real church) but with church like things like the special glass windows, the crosses, church rows candles,.....

*) Beric also tried to get married in 1990 in a very small church/ more kinda like a chapel - just about three rows on each side.
But then Eric had to tell Brooke that Stephanie had been at the divorce hearing in Nevada and had stalled his divorce. Beric had to cancel that wedding (had to tell the priest and Brooke's siblings that the wedding wouldn't happen that day).

*) The Amber and CJ wedding, that got interrupted by Deacon, was set in a small church

*) CJ and Becky got married in a small church setting
_______

For the Puglia wedding, we had Lope first visiting in one episode a "real church" in Italy, meeting Father Fontana there - and then deciding to get married outside
(I wonder if they hadn't been allowed to film inside of the church, or if they had decided from the start to film outside because of the beautiful scenery there).

[Lady Killer]

Why bother? They end up getting divorced months later

[viennagirl]

I wouldn't be surprised that it's not just for budget reasons. Bringing in religion, God, sacraments would imply that these marriages should be lasting "til death do you part." Hard to watch a serious wedding like that when we all know Bell is probably not going to give the marriage a full year to last.

I hope the writers keep it to Carter in the future.

I really, really loved the look of the Italy Lope wedding.

BUT if Bell treats such a wedding as if you can get a religious wedding in Italy and can have a wedding that only matters for the church and god - but then becomes invalid in a minute because (catholic?) religion does NOT matter and only signing a Californian document does - please keep it to state hall weddings/ justice of the peace weddings.

____

Father Fontana: Hope, Liam, since it's your intention to enter the state of marriage, please join hands and declare your consent in front of God and his church. Liam, I believe you have written your vows for Hope.


Father Fontana: By the power vested in me, and with the help of the people of the Polignano a Mare, I now pronounce you husband and wife.

____

Liam: Hope and I still need to sign these?
Bill: To make your marriage official.
Liam: I thought it already was.
Bill: In the eyes of the church, you are married. But according to the state of California, you are not.
(July 27, 2012)

[prpnc]

Has the show ever had a church wedding? Other than the destination weddings, most of the weddings I saw took placed in Eric's living room. There was Katie/Bill's first wedding near her childhood home.

That's the truth! That doggone living room has had so many weddings in it. Come to think of it, I don't know when I've been to a church wedding in real life.