Getty Tom Schwartz and Scheana Shay.
“Vanderpump Rules” star Scheana Shay gave an update on her friendship with her castmate Tom Schwartz. As fans are aware, Schwartz admitted he was aware that his friend and business partner, Tom Sandoval, cheated on his now ex-girlfriend, Ariana Madix, with his castmate Raquel Leviss, in late August 2022.
While recording the May 30 episode of former “Vanderpump Rules” stars Jax Taylor and Brittany Cartwright’s podcast, “When Reality Hits With Jax and Brittany,” Shay, who is close friends with Madix, stated that she does not “know how [she] feel[s] about [Schwartz]” following the revelation that he knew about Sandoval’s affair. She said she interacted with the 40-year-old at the West Hollywood restaurant, TomTom, where he is a junior partner, in May 2023.
“I literally said that to his face when I saw him at TomTom last week, we had some friends in town — my cousins and he had some friends from San Diego. We were at TomTom and I ran into him and he’s like ‘Do you hate me?’ And I go ‘Tom, honestly, I don’t know how I feel about you right now.’ That’s the best thing I can say,” said Shay.
When Taylor asked if Shay believed “[Schwartz] is at fault for a lot of” the cheating scandal, the “Good as Gold” singer replied, “I wouldn’t say a lot, but part of it.” She also stated that she believes he and his friend, Jo Wenberg, were “double dating” with Sandoval and Leviss before reports of the affair began circulating in early March 2023. She asserted, however, that she did not believe Schwartz was aware of Leviss and Sandoval’s romantic involvement when he kissed the 28-year-old during the week of Shay’s August 2022 wedding.
Ariana Madix Stated She Believes Tom Schwartz ‘Was Actively Participating in [Her] Downfall’
During the “Vanderpump Rules” season 10 finale, which premiered on May 17, Madix told Schwartz she could not remain friends with him after her breakup with Sandoval. On the May 17 episode of “Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen,” Madix said she believed Schwartz “was actively participating in [her] downfall” during Sandoval’s affair with Leviss, who joined the show’s cast in 2016. She also stated that she believes he should not remain friends with Tom Sandoval & The Most Extras singer “if Tom Schwartz wants to save himself in any way.”
Jax Taylor Stated He Told Tom Schwartz to End His Friendship with Tom Sandoval
Taylor spoke about Schwartz on the May 16 episode of comedian Heather McDonald’s podcast, “Juicy Scoop with Heather McDonald.” Taylor stated that he believes Schwartz should have pressured Sandoval into telling Madix about his affair. He said, however, that Schwartz is “not [Sandoval’s] father” and was “put in between a rock and a hard place.”
“Like what is he supposed to do – he’s friends with Ariana, he’s friends with Tom Sandoval, like what is he supposed to do?” said Taylor.
The former “Vanderpump Rules” star also stated that he believes Schwartz “is very easily manipulated.” He also claimed he told his former castmate to end his friendship with Sandoval.
“I go ‘hey listen, I’m not going to tell you how to run your life, you’re a grown a** man, you’ve got to cut the ties dude, you got to cut the umbilical cord with Sandoval,'” said Taylor. “‘He is doing nothing but bringing you down, and you do not deserve this, you are a good guy, people are seeing you now, and calling you names, and you are getting dragged through the mud and you have literally done nothing wrong. Should you have said something sooner? Absolutely, but shoulda, woulda, coulda.’”
Taylor also stated that he does not believe it was Schwartz’s “place” to tell Madix about Sandoval’s affair.