Season 2 of The Valley showed Jax Taylor entering rehab amid the demise of his marriage to Brittany Cartwright. However, viewers saw video updates from Jax and heard his alleged rage texts to Brittany and other cast members. So, he wasn’t really absent from the show. In fact, Jax recently returned home in time to be served with divorce papers. Now, there are calls for Jax to be fired, and the executive producer of The Valley, Alex Baskin, is stating his case to defend Jax.
Executive producer Alex Baskin says The Valley has to “tell the full story”
Jax’s aggressive behavior towards Brittany included flipping a coffee table, reportedly bruising her knee. While in rehab, Jax tried to manipulate the staff into saying that he was sent to the hospital, and he spied on Brittany through their house cameras. Plus, The Valley star recently canceled his summer podcast tour because of the backlash.
“We’re all trying to figure out how to tell the story responsibly and fairly, in a way that is entertaining and real. But that doesn’t put a gloss on what is really happening,” Alex recently told Variety. “This subject matter is dark!”
Regarding Jax’s trip to rehab, Alex clarified that this was not something that employers “can legally mandate.” He added, “That’s a step that someone has to take on their own.” In addition, Alex addressed the claims that Bravo is “platforming an abuser” by continuing to employ Jax.
“Our job is to tell the full story. If we didn’t tell the story in its completeness, then we would be covering up something that really happened,” Alex explained, “and denying Brittany the chance to share what she had been through. I don’t think that’s really ‘platforming an abuser’ as much as that is platforming the story – which includes Brittany’s experience as well as Jax’s.”
Meanwhile, Jax’s rep issued a statement to Variety. “I just celebrated my 200th day of sobriety from both alcohol and cocaine. It’s been a long road and continues to be as I work through my mental health issues,” Jax said in his statement.
The Valley airs on Tuesdays at 8/7c on Bravo. It streams on Hayu in the UK and Ireland.
TELL US – IS ALEX JUST TELLING THE REAL STORY? SHOULD JAX BE ON BRAVO?
