Changing sides. Charli Burnett walked back new Vanderpump Rules footage of her defending Raquel Leviss — and admitted that her opinion has shifted since her costar’s affair with Tom Sandoval.
“Oh wow would these convos go differently now,” Charli, 26, tweeted on Wednesday, March 15, shortly after a new episode of Vanderpump Rules aired. “I hate when people aren’t honest. Tbh 🙃 I feel incredibly silly on some things obvi knowing what I know now. I can take the accountability on my end always.”
The SUR waitress continued: “But what I won’t apologize for is always being a good & honest girls girl. Even if I look dumb for believing someone. I pride myself always on being a good friend. Especially to the women around me. I am only responsible for my words & actions if they ever hurt anyone.. xx 🤍.”
During the hit Bravo series, viewers saw Charli side with Raquel, 28, after Lala Kent and Katie Maloney called her out for flirting with Tom Schwartz and making out with Oliver Saunders. (Before filming started on season 10, Katie, 36, and Schwartz, 40, announced their split following more than a decade together.)
“I am starting to see a pattern in Raquel. It seems like she is only interested in men that her friends are either married to or interested in. That’s a big red flag for me,” the “You’re Gonna Love Me” podcast host said in a Wednesday confessional, referring to Raquel’s vocal interest in her then-estranged husband.
Charli, for her part, clapped back after Lala slammed Raquel at a group dinner. “I don’t know who made Lala the spokeswoman of women but we need to find a new president or manager. She is the last person I would want to speak for me,” she said in a confessional about the beauty mogul’s comments that Raquel was embarrassing all women with her behavior. “Talk about how you went from a mansion back to an apartment.”
Earlier this month, Charli addressed her shifting friendship with Raquel when Us Weekly confirmed that Sandoval and Ariana Madix called it quits because he cheated with their costar.
“At the end of the day, no one deserves to feel this gut punch,” the Bravo newcomer wrote via her Instagram Story. “To say Im disappointed would be an understatement.”
The California native, for her part, broke her silence about the scandal when she issued a public apology to Ariana. “I want to apologize for my actions and my choices foremost to Ariana, and to my friends and the fans so invested in our relationships. There is no excuse, I am not a victim and I must own my actions and I deeply regret hurting Ariana,” she wrote via Instagram.
At the time, Raquel offered an update on where her relationship with the TomTom co-owner stands now.
“Besides the indefensible circumstances surrounding our relationship, my feelings for Tom have always been sincere and born out of a loving friendship,” she wrote via Instagram. “Knowing how many people we hurt, I need to understand my choices and learn to make better ones. I need to take care of my health, work on self growth and take time to be OK with being alone. I care for Tom and I don’t want to label anything or predict what lies ahead. Right now I need to heal.”
Meanwhile, Sandoval issued a statement toward Ariana, 37, after receiving backlash for how his initial response omitted her.
“I want to first and foremost apologize to everyone I’ve hurt through this process. Most of all, I want to apologize to Ariana,” he wrote via Instagram. “I made mistakes, I was selfish and made reckless decisions that hurt somebody I love. No one deserves to feel that pain so traumatically and publicly. I can only imagine how devastating this has been for Ariana and everyone around us. I feel really horrible about that. My biggest regret is that I dishonored Ariana. I never meant to disappoint so many people, including our loving families and friends.”
After taking a social media break, Ariana returned one day after the new episode of Vanderpump Rules.
“Hi. where to begin? i want to express my most sincere gratitude for the outpouring of love and support i have received from friends, family, and people i’ve never even met in the last two weeks,” the Florida native captioned an Instagram post on Thursday, March 16. “When i have felt like i couldn’t even stand, you all have given me the strength to continue and seen me through my darkest hours. to say i have been devastated and broken is an understatement. however, i know that i am not in this alone.”
She continued: “So many of my closest friends are also grieving this loss right now and reeling from this betrayal on so many levels. i am so f—king lucky to have the best support system in the world and i hope i can repay every single person for the love you have shown me. what doesn’t kill me better run. love, ariana.”
