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Joe Bradley is setting the record straight about his supposed involvement in a fabricated rumor concerning Maddi Reese’s ex-boyfriend, Trevor Stokes. Despite his name being linked to the controversy, Bradley insists he played no part in the scheme concocted by his Southern Hospitality co-stars, who initially plotted against his now-girlfriend.
On the eve of the SoHo Season 3 reunion, Emmy Sharrett and Will Kulp informed Reese that it was Bradley Carter who had invented the tale of Stokes’ infidelity during their prior relationship. Although the engaged couple, along with TJ Dinch and Mia Alario, were aware the rumor was entirely false, they didn’t reveal the truth until well after Reese had broken up with Stokes and started dating Bradley.
Although Bradley and his co-stars deny his role in spreading the rumor, a screenshot shown in Season 4 suggested otherwise. It appeared to show him participating in a group chat where the deceitful plan was crafted. In the messages, Bradley seemed to encourage his friends to find “texts” or “camera footage” as proof of the supposed cheating incident involving Stokes.
However, during a recent visit to DECIDER’s studio, Bradley clarified that the screenshot aired by Bravo was misleading. “It wasn’t even the group text related to the rumor,” he explained.
“They excluded me from that group,” Bradley stated. “They knew I was such good friends with Maddi and would have spilled everything after a couple of drinks. My loyalty to Maddi was well-known even before we started dating. I had no involvement with the other group text.”
While Reese was clearly upset over the way she ended things with Stokes, Bradley never once questioned her love for him. These two are the ultimate best friends-to-lovers trope, and while he admits it didn’t feel “the best” to hear Reese talk about how much she cared for Stokes in the fallout from the reunion, he knew she needed that closure.
“It doesn’t really bother me as much as I thought it would,” he said of Reese’s emotional reaction. “I just know how strong our relationship is now and there’s zero threat, zero insecurity from that. I just think she needed to kind of finally come to that conclusion and close this door. That’s what’s frustrating me. I just want to put this behind us. I don’t want to hear that guy’s name ever again. Because we’re moving forward. That’s what this year is all about, right?”
Despite what viewers may think, Bradley finds Reese’s reaction to the situation to be the ultimate “green flag.”
“I think a lot of people are [thinking], ‘Oh, red flags. You’re talking about your ex.’ I think it’s a green flag that she has that guilt and she has that heart,” he said. “I’m not looking at it as, like, ‘You’re hung up on him.’ She’s not. She’s hung up on the fact that this horrible thing happened and it made her question a lot of things. But she doesn’t question our relationship.”
Southern Hospitality airs on Wednesday nights at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Bravo. New episodes are available to stream the next day on Peacock.