Emily Simpson says Vicki Gunvalson’s return to The Real Housewives of Orange County has stirred up some bad blood.
Speaking with Us Weekly at BravoCon 2025 on Friday, November 14, Emily, 49, shared that she recently bumped into Vicki, 63, on the red carpet.
“She was, like, ‘Well, I still don’t trust her. I don’t trust her,'” Emily told Us, claiming Vicki was talking about Tamra Judge after their reconciliation. “‘We’re just starting out the friendship again, but I don’t trust her.’ So, I don’t know.”
She added, “It seems very convenient [and] the timing is suspicious.”
Bravo revealed on Friday during “The Bravos” award show that Vicki, who left RHOC in 2020, will be holding an orange once more for season 20.
“I love Victoria,” Emily told Us, wondering if Vicki will get along with Shannon Beador when filming starts. “I know Shannon and Vicki [are] good, but Shannon and Tamra clearly aren’t. So then, if Vicki and Tamra are good, like, that’s a whole mess right there.”
RHOC star Gina Kirschenheiter told Us that Shannon, 61, will probably “say it’s fine.”
“She could be friends with whoever she wants, but I think it will hurt her,” Gina, 41, said.
Tamra Judge Kaitlyn Morris/Getty Images
Gina and Emily also agreed that the RHOC cast could use some new faces.
“Gina put it perfectly … that she thinks Victoria should come back, and that we have a great cast, but maybe we need to cut the dead weight,” Emily said. “I would love a good, strong new person that can bring something fresh. I mean, it’s Orange County, there’s all these huge, wealthy areas with these over-the-top women. Where is one of them? Just give me one strong, wild go-getter!”
Gina joked that they “want strong and kooky” people to join the cast, which also includes Heather Dubrow, Gretchen Rossi and Jen Pedranti.
Before Vicki returns to the Housewives world, the current wives still have to finish season 19.
“I think it’ll be split. I think people will see things the way they want to,” Emily said about the final episodes. “I think there’s no clear proof that makes everything clear. So, I think you can take a little from here or a little from there, or you think this, or you think that, and I think people will still disagree on it.”
Emily is sure that Tamra and Gretchen, 47, won’t get along.
“No, no, no, no. I don’t want any part of that [if they try],” Emily said, adding that she doesn’t “pay attention” to Housewives drama anyway. “I just watch true crime. If you wanted, I could talk about that all day, but I don’t know about other Housewives’ problems.”
Emily has also been focusing on her family, especially after her 10-year-old son Luke was diagnosed with PANDAS. (According to the Cleveland Clinic, PANDAS affects kids who’ve had strep infections.)
“He did [have his procedure]. I didn’t see much of a change, so we’re still looking into other things and working with a specialist,” she explained. “We’re going to try some different things. And the moms out there are amazing. I get so many DMs with advice and stories, so thank you to the moms.”
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