Not convinced. Real Housewives of Orange County alum Tamra Judge isn’t positive that Kelly Dodd will face consequences following her recent controversies despite speculation that she’s been fired from the show.
“I will believe that when I see that,” Judge, 53, told Us Weekly exclusively on Thursday, February 4. “I am very confused [about] what Bravo is thinking nowadays and what they think is good TV and who they think is a good cast member. I certainly know that she has rocked the boat many times when I was on the show … but I kind of feel like Kelly’s a tough one and everything just slides off of her. There’s never really been any real punishment for the things that she has done.”
Last month, Dodd, 45, dismissed stories that she was axed from the reality series and blamed former costar Vicki Gunvalson for starting up the rumor mill. “No I am not fired !!! Contacts [sic] haven’t come out yet ! Vicki stop being a hater,” Dodd tweeted at the time.
Days later, Dodd fired back at critics after joking that she was a COVID-19 superspreader when she went to a restaurant in California without wearing a mask. Her controversial comments resulted in her being dropped by Positive Beverage, a company which she supports as a stakeholder.
“While she remains a minority shareholder in the company, we made the decision today to formally sever ties with her endorsement and likeness with our brand, so that we can continue our charge to spread good vibes and healthy hydration to everyone!” the brand’s founder and CEO Zach Muchnick said in a statement to Us, adding that Dodd’s comments “weren’t aligned with our tone and priorities” as a company.
Following the news of her firing from the drink brand, the Bravo star tweeted, “I’m glad I could help put Positive Beverage on the map and wish them well. I’m also really excited about my next venture in the beauty industry, which is my real passion. Stay tuned!”
Before being let go from Positive Beverage, Dodd also made snide remarks about costar Braunwyn Windham-Burke, who recently came out as a lesbian, and threatened to leave the show if her fellow cast member returned for the next season.
“I know I cannot film with Braunwyn,” Dodd said in an Instagram Live in January. “I know for a fact that I cannot film with her. There’s just no way, and if she comes back then I’m out because I know for a fact that I cannot. She’s dangerous and calling people racists and homophobic.”
Judge, for her part, joined the RHOC cast for season 3 and walked away in January 2020 after 12 years. After leaving the series “on a bad note” with Dodd, the former costars aren’t friends.
“There’s a very sweet, nice side [to Kelly] that I really like that I think sometimes she just lets her mouth move too much,” Judge told Us on Thursday. “We don’t hang in the same circle, we don’t talk. … If I was on [the show], we probably would’ve made up. The one thing about Kelly and myself is we move on fairly easy. It’s not like we harbor bad feelings and hate and things like that.”
Dodd added more fuel to the rumors that she was fired earlier this month when her Instagram bio was changed to read “Proud veteran castmember of #RHOC.” A source later explained that her husband, Rick Leventhal, was responsible for the update and wanted “to reflect Kelly’s longtime tenure on the show.”
As Dodd has continued to face backlash for her opinions, some fans have called for RHOC to be canceled entirely. But Judge, founder of VENA Wellness CBD products, hopes the show doesn’t disappear.
“I don’t want to see Orange County get canceled,” she told Us. “I was a big part of that show being successful and I’m hoping that they can carry that on, whatever that means.”
Executive producer Andy Cohen, for his part, chimed in via Twitter after Meghan McCain supported calls for RHOC to go off the air. “I think you mean reBOOT,” he wrote in January.
With reporting by Diana Cooper
