Gretchen Rossi of ‘RHOC’ Addresses Her Silence on Controversial ‘Like’ Activity

During the season finale of the 19th season of The Real Housewives of Orange County, aired on Thursday, Gretchen Rossi faced backlash after being accused of endorsing controversial social media posts, including those with homophobic content and anti-abortion sentiments. The episode left her castmates discussing her seemingly muted response to the allegations.

Gretchen, who is 47, explained her silence on the matter, stating that she was at a loss for words when confronted with the accusations. Her fellow cast members, such as Emily Simpson, 49, Tamra Judge, 58, and Heather Dubrow, 56, expressed their doubts about her reaction. Meanwhile, Shannon Beador, 61, stepped in to offer her support.

Speaking on the October 30 episode of the RHOC: After Show, Gretchen shared her confusion: “I was so baffled because in my heart, I know there’s no way I would have liked a post like that. What am I supposed to say to this? I know deep down what I stand for and believe in. But how do you defend yourself in that moment?” She continued, “I was genuinely shocked and confused. And then everything just kept getting stranger and stranger.”

Jennifer Pedranti, 48, chimed in, expressing her surprise: “I thought you would have been more visibly upset if you knew, without a doubt, it wasn’t you.”

“I thought you would have come unhinged if you knew in your soul that it was not you,” Jennifer Pedranti, 48, replied.

Meanwhile, Emily, who said she would have been “livid” if similar accusations were made against her, expected Gretchen to lash out at Tamra.

“I thought that her reaction would’ve been, ‘F*ck you, Tamra. This is you creating bullsh*t about me.’ And that’s what I thought the reaction might be, and then I was gonna sit and analyze that. But there was no reaction from her,” she noted as Tamra added that Gretchen’s lack of a reaction “made it worse.”

“If someone was accusing me of something, you just want to go, ‘How can I prove that this is ridiculous, that this is so not true?’” Heather reasoned.

As for what else raised a red flag for Emily, she gave a nod to Gretchen’s chat with Slade Smiley, 51, as she questioned who Gretchen was.

“The other things that was concerning for me is that she showed no emotion or really any kind of reaction until after she spoke to Slade. I don’t know where you land because I can’t tell what’s genuinely you and what’s Slade guiding you,” she explained.

Elsewhere, Shannon said she “can’t imagine” that Gretchen did what she’s accused of.

“I’ve seen a kind, devoted mom, [a] faith-based gal, and a girl who has a lot of friends in the LGBTQ community. So I don’t know. I’m waiting with you to see what happens,” she told Heather. “Something doesn’t make sense about all of it.”

Shannon then noted that everyone reacts differently to different scenarios.

“Shannon Beador laughs. Gretchen just was blindsided and like, ‘What?’ And some people are [deer] in the [headlights] and some people go, and they’re very vocal about what’s going on. So I don’t want to judge her based on her reaction,” she concluded.

The three-part Real Housewives of Orange County season 19 reunion begins next Thursday, November 6, at 8/7c on Bravo.