Heavy/Getty/NBCUniversal "Vanderpump Rules" cast members.
Tom Schwartz said something surprising about the upcoming 11th season of “Vanderpump Rules.”
Nearly four months after his business partner Tom Sandoval’s shocking cheating scandal with co-star Raquel Leviss was unearthed, the veteran bar star admitted he feels nervous and unprepared for the new season.
Schwartz had been a cast member on the Bravo reality show since 2013, so he certainly knows the drill, but in a June 2023 interview he said he’s terrified of what lies ahead. Filming for “Vanderpump Rules” is expected to begin on June 28, 2023, per TMZ.
Tom Schwartz Said He’s “Scared” to Film the New Season of “Vanderpump Rules”
Tommy Garcia/BravoThe cast of “Vanderpump Rules” season 10.
In a June 2023 video interview with Us Weekly, Schwartz admitted that “nothing” can prepare him for another season of “Vanderpump Rules.” “I am scared to start filming again but grateful,” he said. “Eleven seasons, my God who would have thought?”
“Nothing can prepare you okay for another season of ‘Vanderpump Rules,’” he added. “I mean, I’m always slightly terrified when we start a new season. We’ve been through so much with this group and we’re a volatile crew, we’ve always been a volatile group of friends.”
Schwartz knows that the upcoming season could be especially volatile. After his best friend Sandoval’s cheating scandal was uncovered in April 2023, Schwartz was accused of helping him hide the affair. Some people even thought he was a “decoy” who played along with a flirtation with Sandoval’s mistress Leviss to throw people off. Schwartz has maintained he didn’t know the full extent of the affair until January 2023, well after he flirted with and kissed Leviss.
In the Us interview, Schwartz vowed to be more “stoic” going forward. “Maybe I waffled a little bit at the beginning of the [scandal],” he admitted. The Schwartz & Sandy’s co-owner also said he plans to get a “makeover so he can come off a more “suave” and “debonair” for season 11.
On social media, fans reacted to Schwartz’s admission that he is afraid to film the new season.
“Tom is terrified of everything!! He deflects, blames and acts like ‘wow I just was trying to protect my friends’ like the side car, he is a side act,” one commenter wrote on YouTube.
But others held out hope that Schwartz will show a new side of himself post-Scandoval.
“I believe Schwartz has outgrown Sandoval through all this,” one fan wrote.
“I truly believe that we are going to see a different version of Tom Schwartz. The Scandoval debacle opened his eyes because he could have lost his businesses that he put his entire life savings into all because of his careless and messy business partner. … I hope that the cast eases up on Schwartz,” another fan added.
Multiple “Vanderpump Rules” Cast Members Have Blasted Tom Schwartz for Standing By Sandoval During His Affair
Several “Vanderpump Rules” cast members remain angry at Schwartz for not telling Sandoval’s then-girlfriend Ariana Madix about Sandoval’s affair.
During an appearance on “Watch What Happens Live” in April 2023, Lala Kent said she was “grossed out” by Schwartz’s comment that the affair had been “an open secret” in the group since January. “I feel like if I would have been Schwartz I would have said if you don’t tell her I’m going to tell [Ariana],” Kent said.
And in a May 2023 appearance on the Bravo late-night show, Madix accused Schwartz of doing more than covering his best friend’s affair. “I don’t think it was just covering, I think it was actively participating in my downfall,” she said.
Schwartz has since stepped away from the drama as best as he can. According to E! News, the bar owner spoke out about the situation during filming for the Fox reality show “Stars on Mars.” Schwartz noted that whenever he talks about Sandoval’s side of the affair, it sounds like he’s defending him.
“It seems each time I try to weigh in or talk about, ramble on about it, drivel on, I inevitably sound like I’m somehow justifying it or making excuses for it, and I’m not,” he said.
Schwartz also added, “I did not have an affair. I am not him. It’s just so strange that I’ve been absolutely mired in this. It’s taken on almost a life of its own. And after this, I’m stepping away from it permanently.”