Jen O’Connell & Rebecca Quinn Discuss Age of Attraction

Since launching in 2023, Velvet Hammer Media has released a range of projects, including The Big Bakeover and Best Bite Wins. Now, the company is diving headfirst into the dating genre with Age of Attraction, which began streaming its first five episodes on Netflix last week.

In the new format, singles search for their soulmates without worrying about their birthdates. Men and women ranging from ages 22 to 60 begin to build connections with each other at a retreat near Whistler, British Columbia. They are only allowed to share their ages—with each other and with the audience—once they are ready to commit. At that point, the couples move into “the real world,” and they live together in apartments for two weeks to see if they are built to last.

“More and more, we’re seeing older women dating younger men,” says Jen O’Connell, co-founder and co-CEO of Velvet Hammer Media. “It’s always traditionally been stories about older men dating younger women. We’re also living in a time where people just look better and are healthier and are dating outside of their age range. We thought, ‘We can do that in a way that isn’t going to feel like we’re disrespecting anybody.’”

“There have been shows in the past where women are called MILFs or cougars,” she continues. “That’s not the kind of show we wanted to make. We wanted to make a show that tells the story of the whole person and isn’t judging them on that as a filter. We are embracing what’s happening out there but doing it in a way that has a distinct female gaze.”

Out of 40 initial contestants, 32 of them coupled up. The series focuses on six of those 14 couples. There was a slight worry that there either wouldn’t be many couples or that there wouldn’t be a variety in the age differences—or, worse, that the contestants wouldn’t take it seriously. You never know what can happen with a brand-new concept. Thankfully, none of those scenarios happened.

Part of that has to do with a rigorous and honest casting process. “Our casting director, Jacqui Pitman, was excellent,” says Rebecca Quinn, co-founder and co-CEO of Velvet Hammer. “Unlike some shows, we didn’t bait and switch the contestants. [We said], ‘We want you to be looking for love, and we want you to really be open to dating outside of your age range. If not, this isn’t the right show for you.’”

As a result, the contestants chosen to appear on the show were open to all possibilities. And there were a variety of age differences between the couples. In fact, very few were similar in age. The age gaps of the six couples range from—spoiler—15 years to 33 years.

Portraying relationships with age differences isn’t the only aim of the show. Seeing older women dating—when older women dating are often treated as spectacles or are fetishized in some way—is not often seen in dating shows. One of O’Connell’s favorite moments of the series happens because of the willingness to show women outside of their 20s and 30s dating: “You can hear one of the older women giving a little talking-to to a younger man about when they’re intimate and what she expects and what she deserves. To see that on screen is amazing, and it’s not done in a gross way.”

In addition to having the right cast, having the right host is essential for the success of any format. For Age of Attraction, they were looking for a couple with an age difference. Nick Viall (The Bachelorette, The Bachelor), 45, and his wife, Natalie Joy Viall, 27, were selected.

“To be honest with you, I was thinking we would go with an older woman and a younger man for that duo,” O’Connell admits. “But then Nick and Natalie came up. Traditionally, we see a lot of older men, younger women couples out there. What I loved was that Natalie is so smart and grounded and in control and confident. I felt like she really grounded this relationship in a cool way.”

She continues, “I think that we do look at older men with younger women and think, ‘Oh, are the younger women being taken advantage of maybe? Are they too young to understand what’s happening here?’ Let me tell you, she is a star. She makes you like them as a couple even more because you see the way they are together. He clearly adores her, and she’s very, very strong.”

And strong women is what Velvet Hammer is all about. Telling a story from the female gaze is a central part of Velvet Hammer Media’s ethos. O’Connell and Quinn are industry veterans who have worked on some of the biggest format hits in history—from Wipeout and Fear Factor to Deal or No Deal and The Real Housewives franchise. That also means they’ve worked on plenty of projects that were not told from the female perspective. Coming at concepts from a woman’s perspective, one that often has not been given top priority, allows for fresh, new ideas to shine.

Over the years of working in the industry, Quinn says, “For me, the biggest lesson—and it’s hard to do, it gives me a tummy ache thinking about it—is breaking out of some of the old producing habits and the old ways. There are some great shows and there are great ways to produce them. But unfortunately, if you just keep sticking to that, then we’re not evolving.

“People love IP now. Fear Factor was amazing. I worked on that every season. I loved it. I love Joe [Rogan, the host]. It was just the best. I know it got brought back at FOX, and I’m sure it’s doing well. But for me, I want to challenge us. What’s the 2026 version? And how would it be different if I was in charge of that show back in the day, or Jen was in charge, from a female point of view? You’ve got to think it’ll feel fresh, just in that our POVs are going to be heard in a way that they weren’t all those years ago.”

Age of Attraction is just one example of their perspectives bringing a fresh idea to a very popular and crowded genre. The new format also carried the possibility of something going against their plans—what if there hadn’t been any age-gap couples at all? That’s the kind of thing that excites O’Connell the most.

“It took me a long time to get to this place because I’m a control freak, but I love creating either a situation or a format and making a plan and then it blows up in my face because that is where the magic happens,” she says. “That is real life. It’s not scripted. That’s what I live for. When I worked on The Real Housewives of New York City in the earliest days, people would ask me, ‘You script them, right?’ And I’m like, ‘Are you crazy? You think I could come up with that? I would be writing screenplays right now!’”

Another thing O’Connell has learned over her years in the entertainment industry? “I don’t believe in ‘no,’” she says. “I don’t believe in, ‘You can’t do it,’ or, ‘We can’t pull that off.’ If someone says to me on set, ‘Oh, we can’t do that,’ I’m like, ‘Next! I’m going to talk to someone else. We’re going to make it happen.’ I think everything is possible.”

“I suffer from the same affliction, which must make us so annoying,” Quinn quips.

But at the end of the day, that is how the best shows get made. Bringing a unique perspective, being innovative and believing in the impossible. Having fun is pretty important, too.

With Age of Attraction and every other project Velvet Hammer works on, “we just like to have fun together,” O’Connell says. “And in this male-dominated space, we’re really proud of the traction we’ve been able to get, and we’re having a good time doing it.”

Plus, “as much as we like to sell, sell, sell and make money and all that fun stuff—like the guys have been doing for a long time—what’s really been the highlight of this is whenever we sell a show, we know that the crew is going to look and feel different than some of the big format crews when I was growing up,” Quinn adds. “That’s a fun extra benefit. We get to be in control of those hires, and hopefully we’re one of the more inclusive production companies.”

The first five episodes of Age of Attraction are out now on Netflix, and more creations from O’Connell, Quinn and their company will be announced soon. Two celebrity docu-follows are in the works, as are multiple other dating shows and social experiments. The powerhouse producing duo hope to bring their perspective to a big physical competition show soon, too. Age of Attraction is only a taste of what’s to come.