Vanderpump Rules Fans Are Skeptical About Tom & Raquel's Pre-Finale Split
The most scandalous couple in the history of "Vanderpump Rules" is no more... maybe.
The Messenger and Page Six both reported — just hours before the May 17 season finale of the Bravo reality show — that Tom Sandoval and Rachel "Raquel" Leviss, the couple who shocked their friends and Sandoval's longtime girlfriend Ariana Madix by carrying on a secret affair for several months, have called it quits. Ever since the affair was revealed, both to Madix and the world at large, in March of this year, the news cycle surrounding the scandal dubbed as "Scandoval" has been basically non-stop. Current cast members Scheana Shay and Lala Kent spilled tea on their podcasts. Former cast members Kristen Doute, Stassi Schroeder-Clark, Jax Taylor, and Brittany Cartwright spilled more tea on their podcasts. Sandoval shaved his mustache with Howie Mandel, and Leviss lured TMZ to a nail salon in a strip mall for an "impromptu" interview. Basically, it's been a wild ride.
That said, some fans are mighty suspicious about the timing of this report saying Sandoval and Leviss are no more... considering that, in the Season 10 finale and ensuing three-part reunion, they're definitely going to look like the villains. On Twitter, @KimberlyVanLan pointed out that the news involved one of Sandoval's now famously favorite sayings: "This feels like a joke specifically because the source said 'Raquel dipped out' aka Sandoval's favorite phrase." @cannajean1031 agreed, noting the timing: "Isn't this convenient... AND on finale day!"
Fans feel like this reveal about Sandoval and Leviss might be a little fishy
Over on Reddit, fans were equally skeptical — if not more so, responding to the news about the supposed breakup just before the Season 10 finale. u/Dr3am1ng_0f_C0ff3 also clocked the "dipped out" line, writing, "Did Sandoval write this article? Rachel dipped out... duuuuude." This definitely didn't go unnoticed; u/ehensbsg said, "Yeah – the fact that this is the quote they used made me check the date to make sure it wasn't April 1st. I kinda don't believe this at all. There's basically no detail, no info on where this came from, and the quote reads like a joke someone thought would be funny."
Other users went after Sandoval's current vanity project, a band he's dubbed Tom Sandoval and the Most Extras, which he personally funds and which only plays cover songs. u/DeezerWeezer joked, "Highly doubtful seeing as they referred to him as a wannabe rockstar," and u/Serenity_Moon_66 responded in kind: "Exactly. I don't believe it for one minute. If anything they're on a break while he's touring as The Karaoke King and His Venmo Band."
Sandoval and Leviss are, no question, the villains of this "Vanderpump Rules" news cycle, thanks to their illicit dalliance and apparent disregard for the feelings of their friends and loved ones. Whether or not they faked this breakup remains to be seen, but nothing is out of the question, considering how atrociously they've both behaved for several months at this point.
What happened with Scandoval up until this point?
Here's a quick recap on everything that's transpired about Scandoval so far. After the news broke about Sandoval and Leviss' affair, fans went absolutely insane, looking for clues in the episodes of Season 10 that were filmed before news broke. Weirdly, there were near-constant signs that the two were having an affair, between Leviss abandoning her on-screen dalliance with Sandoval's best friend and business partner Tom Schwartz, Schwartz commenting that he thought Raquel had feelings for someone else, and even a moment where Sandoval appears to touch Leviss inappropriately in front of a room full of people.
Leviss and Sandoval both released statements clearly written by PR professionals, and aside from their Howie Mandel and strip mall interviews, they've remained largely silent on the matter. Meanwhile, their fellow cast members have exposed more and more information as time has gone on, putting the pieces together; Lala Kent spoke to Rolling Stone ahead of the premiere, saying that she was suspicious of them for quite some time. "As time went on, there were little things where I was like, 'This just isn't normal' ... When you have a friendship like that, and then you add alcohol, lines are crossed," she told the outlet. They way Sandoval treated Leviss in front of Madix was especially jarring to Kent: ""For me, it was watching him pay more attention to Raquel than his own girlfriend — and the levels he would go to to defend Raquel."
What can fans expect from the finale and reunion?
Perhaps the most notable thing about the Season 10 finale of "Vanderpump Rules" is that it wasn't supposed to be the season finale. The season's fourteeth episode, "There's Something About Her," was originally supposed to be the finale, closing down a wild season with a tasting at Madix and fellow cast member Katie Maloney's new sandwich shop and matriarch Lisa Vanderpump's birthday party at SUR Restaurant and Lounge (formally, Sexy Unique Restaurant Restaurant and Lounge). The fifteenth and now final installment, titled "#Scandoval," takes place after the scandal was revealed... and after cameras resumed filming to examine the fallout in full. A trailer was released midway through Season 10; perhaps the most notable moment is when Sandoval, in an argument with Madix at their home, asks if she "wants anything," presumably meaning from the kitchen. Madix coolly responds, "For you to die." Kristen Doute, Sandoval's original spurned ex turned close friend to Madix, is also returning to the show to — what else? — wreak havoc.
As for the reunion, it will span a whopping three parts, and it's complicated. Leviss claimed that, upon hearing the news, Scheana Shay attacked her; as a result, the two filmed separately and had to remain 200 feet apart due to a protective order. Bravo maestro Andy Cohen also filmed solo segments with Sandoval, Leviss, and Madix, and the reunion trailer shows a lot of yelling, tears, and at least one physical altercation.
The Season 10 finale of "Vanderpump Rules" airs on May 17, and the three-part reunion kicks off on May 24, with new episodes airing weekly.