Heather Dubrow Talks Real Housewives of Orange County, Bullying, and Vicki Gunvalson as a Grandma!

I know most people won't agree with me, but I like Heather Dubrow.  I daresay, she's my favorite of the ladies of Real Housewives of Orange County.  However, girlfriend needs to stop giving interviews that reference Alexis Bellino.  It's unbecoming.  This time around, she seems to be burying the hatchet, but still.  I can't wait until I can write about one of these women in one of the many franchises and actually use the phrase "took the high road."  A girl can dream, can't she?

This time around, Heather is discussing her time on the show, as well as her hesitation to join the cast.  She touches on the breakdown between Vicki Gunvalson and Tamra Barney's friendship and her disdain at the term "bullying" being thrown about in situations where it may not apply.  I'm not going to touch that comment with a ten-foot pole!

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Heather talks with Wet Paint about RHOC.  Excerpts from her chat are below, but you can read the interview in its entirety here.

How were you approached to be on Real Housewives of Orange County?

I was pitching a show with some of my friends about opening a restaurant, and one of the places we went to was Evolution [Media]. And through a series of events, they asked me to be on the show. And I had never seen the show, so I was pretty reticent about joining a cast that I heard was not very nice to each other and threw wine and behaved not exactly in an exemplary manner towards each other. So needless to say, I was pretty worried. So I said no for a while and then my husband pretty much convinced me that this was a great idea.

Your husband, Terry Dubrow, is no stranger to reality TV.

No stranger to reality shows. He was on The Swan and a host of others. So he’s really comfortable in this genre, but I’m not. And having come from scripted television, I think it was a really difficult thing for me to wrap my brain around perhaps doing something of this genre. 

You seem to have fit in pretty quickly.

I think we did OK. I think if my husband was here, he would say that one of my things is that I have the ability to get along with most people. I have friends of all different socioeconomic backgrounds and all race, creeds, cultures. A person’s a person to me, as long as they’re authentic, that’s all that matters. 

Terry’s been a really amusing addition to the show.

He’s a funny guy. […] Just ask him.

What was the biggest challenge of coming into a group of women you didn’t know?

I think coming into a group of women is difficult no matter what. Coming into a group of women on television is quite frankly daunting. I definitely had my guard up. I also think, for them, having someone new come in — and I’ve never watched the show before, so I don’t know how it usually happens — but I assume that they’re looking at me thinking, what’s her story, who’s she gonna be friends with, whose team will she be on, if you will. But I’m not like that. I’m not on anyone’s team. For me, I was sort of glad that I’d never seen the show because I was able to enter the situation with fresh eyes. 

Have you seen Vicki since she became a new grandma? She must be so excited.

She’s very excited. At the Foodie Awards, I actually filled in for her because the baby had jaundice. And Briana was upset, so she went back to the house, but the baby’s fine. 

Of course, having four kids, I think most of my kids were yellow for the first few days. But, you know, as a new mom, it can be really upsetting. So Vicki went to be with her and called me and asked if I could fill in for her presenting.

I saw Vicki last week, and she looks great. And she’s super happy and Briana and Ryan and the baby are doing great, so it’s a good time for her. 

She went through a rough patch last season, especially with Tamra.

That was an unfortunate situation, and I think also, people had some questions about [Vicki’s boyfriend] Brooks [Ayers]. And I think it’s tough when you’re in a relationship and you’re happy and you feel like the world’s against you; that just can’t feel very good. 

With Alexis Bellino gone, there’s a spot open on RHoOC. Who do you think should fill it?

It’s a tough spot, because I think the truth is — first of all, I can’t even confirm that we’re having another season, but hypothetically if we were to do an eighth season, I just hope that they would bring on someone that would challenge everyone a little, like I think I did. I think that’s an interesting dynamic and good for a group to mix things up a little bit and maybe bring in an element we don’t already have.

Recently on Twitter, you hinted that Alexis was trying to negotiate with Bravo to get a bigger salary, and that’s why she’s not coming back. Is there anything more you can say? 

I’m really not allowed to talk about that stuff. We all have moments where we get a little hot under the collar and start tweeting things we shouldn’t. But I’ll tell you this. If you saw my last tweet, I wished her well. I think this is the bottom line: I don’t like the term bullying being bandied about like this. Bullying is an incredibly serious issue, and it’s just not applicable in this situation. 

When you sign on to be on a reality show, you understand that it’s your role to have an opinion. It means that if you’re someone with filters, you need to take your filters out and say what it is that you’re thinking. Because it’s all about relationships and opinions and being vocal about them. And I think Alexis, having been in her third year this past year, is cognizant of that fact. So, I think, my perception is that when it turns on you and it’s not working out for you, it’s very easy to run to the corner and cry victim. But that’s just not that case. You know, this is the show. The show is about relationships and opinions. We all go into it with open eyes. I’m done discussing this. As far as I’m concerned, the Alexis chapter is closed. I wish her well and her family. I have no ill feelings. I really don’t. And listen, everyone moves on.

I can't wait to hear y'all's take on this interview.  I think it's pretty evident that there will be an eighth season, especially given that fact that Alexis has already claimed to turn down the offer.  Heather is very well spoken, which makes me still curious as to why she's so tight with Tamra.  Talk about opposites attracting!  I have a feeling that the OC just needs to go out to pasture.  Is that so wrong?

TELL US-WHAT DO YOU THINK OF HEATHER'S INTERVIEW?  WILL YOU WATCH ANOTHER SEASON?

[Photo Credit: Twitter]

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