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Heather Dubrow recently set the record straight regarding a text she sent to Vicki Gunvalson, countering Vicki’s claim that Heather declared herself the “leader of the pack.” Additionally, Heather suggested that Vicki often manages to avoid repercussions on the Real Housewives of Orange County. She also accused Jennifer Pedranti of “gaslighting.”
This season, Vicki implied Heather had texted her, asserting her leadership status on RHOC. Amidst this, Jennifer reported to Tamra Judge that Heather was allegedly gossiping about Tamra with other cast members, sparking a heated confrontation between Tamra and Heather.
In a conversation with Us Weekly, Heather refuted Vicki’s allegations, stating she never branded herself as the “leader of the pack.”
“I texted [Vicki] right before we started filming, and I said, ‘Hey, welcome back! Can’t wait to film!’ or something similar, something nice,” shared Heather, implying that Vicki possibly misinterpreted or exaggerated the message.
“Vicki, in her confessional, said ‘Heather texted me to say welcome back, and I’m the leader of the pack’. Would I ever say that?” she asked. “I never said that. That is so crazy.”
But Heather pointed out a recent poll asking fans who they believe is really the “leader of the OC pack.”
“When Tamra was on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen last week, they did a poll, and I got 53 percent of the vote,” said Heather. “So apparently, I am [the leader].”
At one point, Heather addressed how positive she always feels before filming a new season.
“I’m such a moron. Literally every year, I’m like, ‘This is going to be the year that I am just chill and just breeze through,’” said Heather. “And then that never happens. … [I’ve never] had an easy season. … I take things personally. I’m overly sensitive. I step in it a bit. … I mean, not intentionally, but you know.”
“I also think that there’s a big double standard when it comes to me. I think things that fly with the other girls don’t fly with me,” the star added. “I think that, you know, someone like Vicki can do things that people are upset about, but then they go, ‘But it’s Vicki. Ha ha ha’, and everyone moves on. But if it’s me, it hits differently.”
According to the star, Heather doesn’t have “anyone” who’s in her corner after the fight with Jennifer and Tamra during the new season.
“You saw what happened with me and Tamra and Jenn. That was so disappointing. All of that,” she told the same outlet, referring to Jennifer’s claims that Heather spoke about Tamra behind her back. “Because Jenn and I hung out and spoke between seasons. … [We] talked on the phone. We went out to dinner with our husbands. We spent time together, and no one ever talked about Tamra. Not once.”
But Heather said Jennifer accused her of doing just that as soon as “the cameras picked up.”
“[I was asked], ‘How’s your relationship with Tamra? Define your relationship,’ … then runs to Tamra and says, ‘She talks about you all the time,’” said Heather. “We never talked about her once until [we were filming]. … [It] felt like gaslighting to me.”
“I didn’t like that, and I’m not really sure what the angle was there,” she said of Jennifer. “[I was] disappointed [that Tamra] just listened to her right off the bat. … Those two have been at odds for a long time, and I’m not sure why I was the collateral damage in the middle of that.”
Heather said she doesn’t believe her costars’ claim that she has the “most to answer for” during the reunion.
“I mean, you’re going to have to watch this and see if you agree,” she expressed. “They probably would have said the same thing in season 17, I don’t know.”
Heather claimed that “opinions get fuzzy” after shooting a season, and memories often change.
“Then you watch it back and have another opinion of what happened. If I screwed up and I did something, I’ll be the first one to say I’m sorry at the reunion,” she said. “But my instinct is, this is very layered.”