Heavy/Getty/NBCUniversal Alexis Bellino and the cast of RHOC season 18.
“Real Housewives of Orange County” star Alexis Bellino shared her boyfriend, John Janssen, initially did not want her to film for the show’s 18th season.
During a joint July 30 interview on former Bravo producer Carlos King’s podcast, “Reality with The King,” Janssen and his girlfriend discussed Bellino’s return to RHOC after an 11-year absence. According to Bellino, Janssen, who was in a 3-year relationship with RHOC star Shannon Beador until late 2022, offered her a significant amount of money to turn down filming the show’s 18th season.
“John offered to pay me the full salary that Bravo was going to pay me, not to do the show,” said Bellino.
She then stated that Janssen’s attempt to pay her did not align with speculation that Beador contributed more financially during their three-year-long relationship.
“So if he is ‘Mister doesn’t have money,’ and she pays for everything, he is not going to do that,” said Bellino.
Bellino also addressed Beador stating that Janssen “love-bombed her” throughout their relationship.
“How does he love-bomb you if he’s broke and doesn’t give you anything? And you’re paying for everything,” asked Bellino.
Alexis Bellino Discussed Coming Back to RHOC
While recording the “Reality with The King” podcast episode, Bellino stated she was approached to return to RHOC for season 18 before she began dating Janssen in late 2023. She said Bravo producers “were excited” for her to come back to the series as a single woman. As fans are aware, Bellino was married to her ex-husband, Jim Bellino, when she filmed for the show’s 5th, 6th, 7th, and 8th seasons.
Bellino also said she was hesitant to sign a contract for RHOC season 18. She decided to contact her psychic, who told her that her late mother, Penelope, wanted her to return to the Bravo series.
“My mom had came through that reading. And my mom had just passed three months before that. So my mom came through and said, ‘What are you doing? I’m back doing all this work for you. You’re supposed to go back. Jesus didn’t take the wheel. I did. So put on your big girl pants and go,'” said Bellino.
According to Bellino, she immediately called Janssen to let him know she would be filming for RHOC season 18. She stated that Janssen “didn’t want [her] to go back on the show.” She explained that she and Janssen felt the show “is a little bit toxic” and could have a negative effect on their relationship.
“But once I told him ‘I’m going back,’ he was very supportive,” continued Bellino on King’s podcast.
Bellino also shared she had difficulty filming with Beador during the production of RHOC season 18.
“Everyone is like, ‘Oh poor Shannon.’ What about me? She dated him before me. Do you think it’s easy for me to go try to film and go be around that, you know, my boyfriend’s ex? No, it’s not easy,” said Bellino to King.
In the “Reality with the King” podcast episode, Janssen described dating Beador. He stated that while he believes “she had a wonderful side to her,” he felt like he was “failing” when he was with her.
“I think people out there just assume, like, John was the problem in the relationship. And I challenge people to think what it might be like to be with Shannon in this relationship,” said Janssen during the podcast interview.
Shannon Beador Spoke About Her Relationship With John Janssen in an Us Weekly Interview
Beador discussed her relationship with Janssen in a July 2024 interview with Us Weekly. She said their relationship “just wasn’t healthy.”
“I’m glad that we are not together anymore,” said Beador to Us Weekly.
She also gave her opinion about Janssen’s relationship with Bellino. According to Beador, “John is a relationship person.”
“He’s never lived alone. In our relationship, he moved very quickly too. A couple weeks, and saying, ‘We’re going to spend the rest of our lives together.’ And that’s what I thought. So that’s John. He’s a love-bomber,” said Beador.
During the Us Weekly interview, Beador shared that her September 2023 DUI arrest made her evaluate her behavior. She stated that she has “a lot of work to do,” but has been “feel[ing] good about [herself].” In addition, Beador said she does not “want to be in a relationship right now,” which is unusual for her.
“I’m like if I’m not in a relationship — that’s my purpose. And I have zero desire to. I want to have a relationship with myself,” said Beador.
Alexis Bellino Says Fans Will John Janssen in a Better Light After the Entirety of RHOC Season 18 Airs
Bellino said RHOC fans view Janssen in a better light after season 18 during a June 2024 interview on her RHOC castmate and friend, Tamra Judge‘s podcast, “Two Ts In a Pod,” co-hosted by Teddi Mellencamp.
“John is one of the kindness, nicest, most generous, amazing, God-fearing humans I know. And gives back to the world. And constantly gets beat down and still tries to rise above. The truth is going to come out,” said Bellino during the “Two Ts In A Pod” interview.
While recording the “Two Ts In a Pod” episode, Bellino said she and Janssen plan to get engaged.
“I’ll be honest with you, we have looked at rings. And we are talking about it. It could happen tomorrow. It could happen six months from now. I do know it’s coming. Because we’ve already talked about our entire future. We already have a plan in place,” said Bellino.