Even Raquel Leviss Thinks Scandoval Might Have Been ‘Fabricated’ to Boost ‘Vanderpump Rules’ Ratings

When the Scandoval news first broke earlier this year, it also broke the internet. Long-time fans of Vanderpump Rules were left in total shock and disbelief when it emerged that Tom Sandoval had cheated on his longtime girlfriend Ariana Madix with their friend and fellow castmate Raquel Leviss. And their jaws remained on the floor as the fallout from the months-long affair came to light during season 10’s final episodes. Even casual reality TV viewers who weren’t caught up with the latest season of VPR found themselves getting sucked into the scandalous black hole. It was all anyone could talk about. It was so dramatic, so juicy, and such good television that people began to speculate that it was staged to bolster ratings.

And now, after months of reflection on her part in the whole affair, Leviss is wondering the very same thing.

During part two of her appearance on Bethenny Frankel’s podcast, the reality star — who has now embraced her real name, Rachel — suggested Sandoval was offered a producing credit on the upcoming Season 11 as an “award” of sorts for bringing the drama.

“He’s not technically a producer, he’s been on the series from day one, Season One,” Leviss said when Frankel asked about Sandoval’s producing status. “I don’t know if I’m even able to disclose this information but he did tell me that for negotiations for season 11, he was offered a producer credit for season 11.”

Prior to Scandoval, VPR was in a bit of a public slump, with ratings at an all-time low and the cast struggling to find drama compelling enough to keep viewers’ attention. It was no secret that the future of the show was in jeopardy. Even though Leviss was very much involved in the real-life affair, looking back, she said the timing of everything was certainly suspicious.

“I think he was being rewarded for the Scandoval of it all, and to me that’s just kinda gross because it seems… it makes me skeptical. Was this really just something that was fabricated for this end result?” she said. “Alex Baskin, our executive producer, went on record and said the show was going to be canceled after season 10 and if it wasn’t for Scandoval there wouldn’t be a season 11.”

Now, given that Leviss was very much, indisputably, having an affair with Sandoval, one can only assume that she is questioning the validity of how the relationship became public and part of the show. As VPR fans — and probably even haters, at this point — know, Madix discovered the affair after Sandoval’s phone slipped out of his pocket during a concert. When Madix flipped through his phone, she discovered a saved FaceTime video of Sandoval and Leviss masturbating to each other — a video Leviss said was recorded without her consent.

“How did you feel knowing someone you thought you were in love with recorded you and then it ends up with a cast of a TV show?” asked Frankel. 

“I felt very betrayed. I felt like I couldn’t trust this person,” Leviss said of Sandoval. “I felt like my privacy didn’t matter to him and he didn’t really give a good excuse besides he wanted me to see it later on to see how beautiful I was. But if he would have asked for permission, I would have said no.”

“When Tom and I were filming at my apartment after filming got picked back up, I said to Tom, ‘How could I trust you? You filmed me without my consent.’ He admitted to it, but after that scene wrapped, he said, ‘Why did you say that? Why did you say that on camera? You made me look bad,’ and I said, ‘Well, that’s what happened,’” Leviss continued. “And he ended up boycotting filming the rest of Scandoval so that he could have editing rights to that scene to take out that specific piece.”

Part one of Leviss’ interview with Frankel was released on Wednesday. During the chat, Leviss opened up about seeking treatment for her mental health, learning she has a love addiction, and coming to terms with her part in the affair. “It’s been a whirlwind. It’s been chaos, but I’ve taken some time to myself to reflect and try to understand my actions and I finally have come to a place where it makes sense to me.”