It’s apology time.
Tom Sandoval, star of Vanderpump Rules, was the subject of a nearly 7,000 word profile in The New York Times, where he compared his recent cheating scandal to George Floyd and O.J. Simpson.
He has now apologized.
“My intentions behind the comments I made in New York Times Magazine were to explain the level of national media attention my affair received. The comparison was inappropriate and ignorant. I’m incredibly sorry and embarrassed,” Sandoval said.
When asked why Scandoval – which kicked off during the Bravo series during the end of last season – had got so big, Sandoval said, “I’m not a pop-culture historian really but I witnessed the O.J. Simpson thing and George Floyd and all these big things, which is really weird to compare this to that, I think, but do you think in a weird way it’s a little bit the same?”
He also believes that he’s caught more grief than former That 70s Show star Danny Masterson. “I feel like I got more hate than Danny Masterson, and he’s a convicted rapist,” he added.
Scandoval started when Sandoval, who recently appeared on Fox’s Special Forces reality series, cheated on his then partner Ariana Madix with one of her best friends, Rachel Leviss. It erupted as the tenth season of the Bravo show was airing but was captured in a number of reunion specials and its impact has run through season 11, which is currently on air.
Vanderpump Rules is produced by Amazon MGM Studios’ Evolution Media and is exec produced by Alex Baskin, Jen McClure-Metz, Joe Kingsley, Jeremiah Smith, Natalie Neurauter, Lisa Vanderpump, and Ken Todd.