Andy Cohen has denied that there is a cast shake-up coming for the Real Housewives of New Jersey, calling recent reports of a reboot “fake” and saying the network has not even had “serious conversations” about Season 15. However, the cancelation of a traditional reunion for the Jersey ladies this season has fans speculating about what next season will look like. The divide in the group between fan-favorite Teresa Giudice and her estranged sister-in-law Melissa Gorga has led to a stalemate that prevents them from moving forward together. It seems likely that production will need to find someone new to center the series around in Season 15. But which of the Jersey Housewives has what it takes to step into center stage next year?
There are several candidates within the main cast with the potential to reorient the series. Newcomers Danielle Cabral and Rachel Fuda both have interesting and busy lives, with small children near the same ages and husbands that willingly participate in their spouse’s reality career, which has become a staple feature on Real Housewives of New Jersey. There are also options among the more seasoned cast, such as Margaret Josephs and Dolores Catania, whose story lines in recent seasons have been caught up in the divided group, with Margaret on team Melissa and Dolores attempting to be neutral but always seeming to fall on team Teresa. The toxic desire to take down the other team has been part of the problem in the series in recent seasons, so it would be interesting to see what these women can offer the series without this longstanding feud as the central story line.
Teresa’s Feuds Aren’t Aging Well on ‘RHONJ’
Image by Annamaria Ward, Bravo
It is, of course, also possible that the divided cast will continue, with both camps avoiding the other. However, even Andy has acknowledged that this divide is unsustainable in the world of reality TV, especially on a series whose premise is to share the lives of a group of ladies who share in friendship as they live, work, and travel together. The emphasis on uniting a divided group seems to be the path forward for Season 15. But with stubborn pride on both sides, especially between Teresa and her brother, Melissa’s husband, Joe Gorga, it is difficult to picture either woman being the central story next year. Teresa seemed confident in the Season 13 reunion that if it came down to one or the other leaving, that it would be Melissa who would be asked to depart the series. However, Melissa is working overtime in Season 14 to prove that she leads an interesting life outside of Teresa’s passive-aggressive world, while Teresa seems stuck fighting about past drama at every turn.
It seems that Teresa has had a strategy to foreground feuds instead of friendship in recent seasons. The original concept of the Housewives franchise was foregrounding a group of fabulous women whose lives intersect through friendship and business. But Teresa is a seasoned professional when it comes to navigating reality TV while having something to hide. True friendships involve honest discussions about your life, your troubles and your achievements. When you have something you do not want to share on camera, these kinds of conversations can be difficult to navigate and exhausting to revisit. In lieu of honestly discussing her life, Teresa has opted to self-produce story lines in recent seasons by choosing a co-star to feud with, while playing innocent in everyone’s faces.
The Feuds Are A Shield For Teresa
Image via BravoTV.
In Season 14, it’s Margaret who Teresa is focusing on. In the past, it had been her sister-in-law Melissa that was the focal point of her ire. But other women in the group have also been targeted, including at different times Jackie Goldschneider, Kim DePaola, and Jacqueline Laurita. What these feuds provide for Teresa is a shield, a reason to focus on petty insults and the past behavior of women in the group, rather than putting Teresa’s marriage or businesses under scrutiny in each scene. Although Teresa claims she and Luis are not having any problems in their marriage with their blended families, in recent episodes there have been brief moments showing her irritation about his legal and financial troubles that are being splashed across media platforms.
Teresa has a loyal, if sometimes rabid, fan base. But her habits of hiding any negativity in her life and painting a rose-tinted picture of herself and her family are getting old. In the scenes where she is feuding with her “friends”, Teresa’s true colors are starting to show, and her smiling mask occasionally slips. In Season 14, Teresa is showing moments of pettiness and irritation that are quite opposed to the unbothered “namaste” personality that she otherwise cultivates on the series. How much more of the repeated pattern will viewers tune in for once Teresa has alienated herself from the group almost entirely?
Jen Fessler’s budding friendship with Teresa Giudice has raised some eyebrows.
Melissa Has a Lot To Offer in Season 14
Image via Bravo
Melissa has made a significant effort to demonstrate in Season 14 that she does not need her sister-in-law for a story line. Rather than spending another season caught between her husband and his sister and their constant battle for who controls the narrative between them, Melissa has invited viewers into her daily life. She has filmed at her clothing store, Envy. She hosted a large family dinner to celebrate her daughter leaving for college. Melissa also arranged the filming of her cousin’s wedding, where her husband “Father Joe” was officiant. The wedding segment felt like Housewives nostalgia, when such significant moments in the cast’s lives were the focus, rather than petty feuds and bickering. Time will tell, however, if including more of her extended family in the series will work out better for Melissa than it did for Teresa.
The Newest Wives Are in a League of Their Own on ‘RHONJ’
Danielle has already done a pretty stellar job of taking center stage this season. Like Melissa, she is proving that she has everything going on in her life that a Housewife needs to stay relevant. Danielle shared her New York Fashion Week showing of her Boujie Kidz fashion line, as well as her life as a “momager” as her daughter steps into modeling and acting. She has invited cameras into her home to share her life with her hot and supportive husband, Nate Cabral. Danielle has even brought close friends from outside the Real Housewives of New Jersey circle onto the series, injecting fresh energy at events and possibly testing whether they might fit with the group for future roles. And in her conflict with Season 14 villain Jennifer Aydin, Danielle is proving that she will stand her ground when provoked, never shying away from the drama that others bring to her door.
Rachel is the other new cast member who is proving herself this season. Although she has spent much of Season 14 caught up in the drama between her husband, John Fuda, and Teresa, in the most recent episodes, Rachel has been trying to turn the conversation away from the drama. Teresa digging into John’s past has been her story line so far this season, other than her efforts to take Margaret down, and it seems that Rachel has become tired of this game. Instead, she has started to foreground her volunteer work bringing together children who suffer with rheumatoid arthritis in a support group filled with their peers. Rachel has also been open to sharing her world, inviting cameras into her home for family dinners, and being transparent about her daughter’s struggle with delayed speech. Her continued friendship with Danielle also solidifies her status among the group, and their “opposites attract” dynamic has the potential to grow into something special as the seasons progress.
Can the Seasoned Cast Turn the Tide on ‘RHONJ’?
Image via Bravo
The more seasoned cast members have been caught up in the feuds that have popped up over the years, and are more likely than the newbies to conceal aspects of their lives, having grown cautious over time. Teresa, Jen, and Margaret have reduced their own roles to strategic plotting sessions rather than authentically sharing their lives. Dolores has always played a much-needed mediator role in the contentious group of ladies, although she has always kept a tight rein over what her family and romantic partners will share about their lives on camera. With season after season dedicated to petty feuds over social media posts and digging into one another’s pasts, it seems the time has come for the ladies to reevaluate their strategies, or be replaced by more newcomers like Danielle and Rachel, who are still excited to share their lives on camera. Casting around them, with a circle of friends they actually enjoy, and the occasional legacy lady around, might be the smart choice for Bravo moving forward.
New episodes of Real Housewives of New Jersey air Sundays on Bravo. Past seasons can be streamed on Peacock.