Vicki Gunvalson will ‘never forgive’ Bravo for ‘traumatic’ moment she learned of her mom’s death on camera
By Caroline Blair,
1 days ago
Vicki Gunvalson put Bravo on blast for filming her the moment she found out about her mom’s death on “The Real Housewives of Orange County.”
The “RHOC” alum recalled the ordeal in a preview clip from Vice’s new series, “The Dark Side of Reality TV,” obtained by People on Monday.
While filming Season 10 of the hit reality series, Gunvalson was playing games with her co-stars at Shannon Beador’s home when her family members were trying to reach her to tell her the tragic news.
Vicki Gunvalson slammed Bravo for how they handled her finding out about mother Joanne Steinmetz’s death. vickigunvalson/Instagram Gunvalson’s daughter called her to share the tragic news while she was filming Season 10 of “The Real Housewives of Orange County,” as pictured here in 2015. Bravo
“So, they called production [and my daughter] Brianna had been calling, calling, calling, and they kept telling her, ‘Well, she’s filming right now, blah, blah, blah,’” Gunvalson claimed. “She’s like, ‘I need to talk to my mom right now.’”
Gunvalson, 62, recalled feeling uneasy after production decided to “set up” a room in Beador’s house with “lights and cameramen” for her to use the landline and call her daughter.
“I was really upset that production knew for an hour, and they didn’t tell me,” Gunvalson said. “They were out of line, and I think they should have taken me aside and said, ‘Your mom has passed. Talk to your daughter off camera.’ If I was a producer, that’s what I would’ve done.”
The Bravolebrity, pictured here in 2023, said she would’ve handled the situation differently. Bravo via Getty Images Gunvalson called the ordeal “traumatic.”
Gunvalson argued that producers should have let her “scream and cry” on her own and “be mad.”
“It was very, very traumatic,” she added. “I will never forgive Bravo for that.”
Reps for Bravo did not return Page Six’s requests for comment.
The Coto Insurance founder answered the call and immediately appeared shocked while falling to the floor and screaming.
Gunvalson previously said she did “not blame Bravo” for how they handled her mom’s death. vickigunvalson/Instagram “It’s my life,” Gunvalson said on “Watch What Happens Live” in 2015. Charles Sykes/Bravo via Getty Images
“Oh, my God. I don’t want to believe this,” she cried at the time. “I just talked to her this morning.”
Gunvalson continued reacting to the news, saying, “I want to be with my mom. I need her every day. I need her so bad. Who’s going to worry about me? I don’t have parents now. I need my parents. I need my mom.”
The Bravolebrity –– who began starring on the show in 2006 –– previously had a different stance on the ordeal.
Gunvalson, pictured here with Heather Dubrow, starred on the series since it aired in 2006. NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal via Getty Images Bravo has not responded to Gunvalson’s comments. Instagram
When asked if Gunvalson was “upset” that the scene aired, she said she hadn’t seen it yet, but she is “not going to be upset about it.”
“It’s part of my reality,” she said. “I lost my mother. I signed up for all areas of my life to be exposed –– the good and the bad … This is not a moment that I feel as of right now, that I regret.”
Gunvalson doubled down on that statement, adding, “I don’t blame Bravo. I don’t blame Evolution [Media]. I don’t blame anybody, it’s my life.”
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