Jenn Fessler is rocking her sophomore season. She’s finding her voice, and resolute to hang out with Teresa Giudice regardless of what Margaret Josephs, Melissa Gorga, and Rachel Fuda think.
Yes, Jenn is breaking rank. And she’s enjoying giving her “opinion more” this season, though it’s making her some enemies.
Jenn admitted to being “sucked in more” this season
“Season 14 was not the easy, breezy, funny, silly season that Season 13 felt like,” Jenn told The Daily Beast while reflecting on the cast dynamic. “Season 1, I didn’t really have to engage in the craziness, and I was definitely sucked in more my second season.”
“But, I also think it’s nice to be able to give my opinion more, to weigh in,” she admitted.
Jenn stepped into the drama between Teresa and the Fudas. The RHONJ veteran brought up John Fuda’s past in an ill-advised confrontation. After some reflection, the mother-of-four backtracked to say she did not mean in the present tense.
“I definitely did not foresee her having such an intense reaction to that conversation. Having said that, I didn’t think that Rachel is going to love it,” Jenn said of her involvement. “I felt so excited by getting Teresa to say John Fuda is not a drug dealer. John Fuda was a kid when he did this stupid kid stuff and got himself in trouble in this sort of sad way. But that’s old news. That’s kid behavior. And now he’s this great father, and this great husband, and this great businessman. So for me, I thought that it was going to be a victory, but not so much.”
Indeed, John walked out on a conversation between himself and Teresa after the latter did not apologize to his liking. It turns out, the entrepreneur also had unkind words for Jenn, accusing her of being a “social climber.” Jenn was “baffled” by the statement.
“First of all, I’ve said this in other interviews, but there’s no one below me. And there’s no one above me,” she explained. “And that goes for all of us. So there’s no way to climb by being friends with anyone. That’s what I’ve learned in therapy.”
Jenn considers who could be “on the chopping block” next season
Jenn has become a fan favorite early on in the season. And she reflected on how the viewers made RHONJ the hit that it is.
“I think it’s a situation where viewers love the women on Jersey so much, and they become so attached to the women and their lives that they take it personally when things don’t go well,” she said. “I get that it affects people because as a viewer, I would think about this stuff on Monday mornings, too, right? Go into my office, and that was the thing on my mind. Forget work. It was what had happened the night before with, you know, Teresa, Melissa, or whoever it was.”
Here’s something that has Jenn up at night; her longevity on the show. The reality TV star is hoping to be back for next season but currently has no confirmation.
“I’m trying to figure it out, like everyone else is, all the time. What’s going to happen? Who’s on the chopping block? she stated. “And it wakes me up in the middle of night. Not in a frightened-of-it wakes me up [way], but more like, ‘Well, in this scenario if Teresa stays, let’s say Danielle and Jen stay, what happens then? And if Melissa stays, and Marge…’ So it’s in my head a lot, and I’m trying to put the puzzle together. But I don’t know what’s going to happen.”
Catch Real Housewives of New Jersey Sundays at 8/7c on Bravo.