Apparently, Vanderpump Rules producers were just as shocked about scandoval as the rest of us!
For those who need a refresher, Ariana Madix broke up with her longtime boyfriend, Tom Sandoval, in March after discovering he was having a seven-month affair with their co-star Raquel Leviss. Since the news broke, the cast insisted the secret relationship between Sandoval and Raquel came as a shock to them. But as viewers have seen while watching episodes of season 10 of VPR over the past few weeks, the group had suspicions about their close relationship since last year! James Kennedy’s girlfriend Ally Lewber revealed a “weird” interaction Raquel and Sandoval had at The Abbey without Ariana, leading Katie Maloney and Lala Kent to suspect something was going on. A few people have questioned a sleepover Raquel and Sandoval had at his and Ariana’s home – while she was away for her grandmother’s funeral. Eagle-eyed fans even spotted the 40-year-old allegedly grabbing Raquel’s butt at one point this season!
Related: Jennifer Lopez Says She’ll ‘Walk Out’ On Ben Affleck If He Pulls A Sandoval!
There have been so many obvious signs about her and Sandoval’s secret relationship — to point where fans questioned whether the producers knew about the affair for a while or re-edited the show after scandoval’s exposure. Many also wondered why they didn’t pursue the cheating scandal further while filming season 10, even though the cast was suspicious of the infidelity then. And now, we are finally getting some answers!
During his SiriusXM show Radio Andy on Thursday, Andy Cohen revealed that Vanderpump Rules producers never saw the affair between Sandoval and Raquel coming — despite having so much footage of the cast questioning their close “friendship” with each other. Why is that? The Bravo producer explained that since Ariana kept shutting down the allegations, they decided to trust her gut and not believe the rumors as well:
“This is what production pointed to because I called them once I started seeing the episodes and I was like, ‘Are you telling me you guys didn’t get that this was happening?’ And they said they all kind of followed Ariana [Madix]‘s lead. And Ariana was saying, ‘No. I know Raquel and this is not happening.’”
Andy said she seemed so sure Raquel would not betray her at the time that the team decided not to pursue the cheating storyline further. So when the affair news broke, it stunned the cast, crew, and producers:
“The funny thing is — if you think about it now — if you listen to what Ariana is saying she is not saying, ‘Tom would never do that. Isn’t she mainly pointing to Raquel? She [kept saying] that Raquel is not that kind of girl and that we were barking up the wrong tree.”
He continued:
“I think because Ariana was shutting down the conversations about them being in an open relationship, and she was shutting down the idea that Raquel could ever even do that. That is why no one took it further, and that is why it actually was a surprise. Then you look at this footage and you’re like, ‘This story wrote itself.’”
That is so heartbreaking. Ariana trusted and defended the former pageant queen so much throughout the season. She even told Katie on Wednesday’s episode of the reality series that Raquel was so “loyal” and would never betray her by sleeping with Sandoval:
“Raquel is my friend. She is someone that is kind and sweet and loyal and just a delight since the day I met her. Obviously I love Raquel dearly and she’s one of my closest friends. I not only trust and love her — I trust and love my boyfriend.”
Jeez. It must have been so painful for the 37-year-old to learn she was wrong about the SUR waitress. Clearly, Raquel and Sandoval had everyone fooled! Reactions, Perezcious readers? Let us know in the comments below.
[Image via Bravo/YouTube]
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