Dolores Catania appeared on Sunday’s Watch What Happens Live, where she opened up about the upcoming 15th season of The Real Housewives of New Jersey.
While also addressing Margaret Josephs, 57, and Jackie Goldschneider‘s actions against Luis Ruelas, 50, her own feud with Margaret, and her ongoing position as Switzerland, Dolores, 53, reacted to Joe Gorga, 49, suggesting Paul “Paulie” Connell was a “scumbag,” spoke of the canceled reunion, and more.
On the August 4 episode of WWHL, after being asked who should return for season 15, Dolores named Teresa Giudice, 52, Jennifer Fessler, 54, and Margaret.
“Well of course Teresa. I’ve always been close with her. And then Jen Fessler’s hysterical, but I mean, they’re all, Margaret, I love them all, I really love them as a group,” Dolores revealed.
Following the finale episode of RHONJ season 14, which saw Luis wishing harm on Margaret’s child, Dolores admitted she didn’t like the behavior.
“I was upset that he said that and I just wish it wasn’t said,” she shared.
As for her own actions against Margaret, which came after Margaret suggested she’d been invited to the pre-reunion meeting about Luis last season, Dolores explained why she got so upset.
“For me, it’s like my integrity there because she was saying something that didn’t happen and it was blatantly making me so furious. So I was, yeah, it wasn’t so much about, ‘Oh it makes me look like a bad friend.’ But it just wasn’t true,” she stated.
For many years, Dolores has been labeled as Switzerland due to her neutral stance between her castmates.
“You know the abuse I take off camera. You have no idea,” Dolores shared of her co-stars’ reactions to her friendships with their foes.
While Dolores has been accused of playing both sides of the fence, she denied any such thing, saying, “I don’t play both sides of the fence. I try to keep the peace. Playing both sides of the fence is turning one behind their back. I do nothing behind anybody’s back.”
Looking back at the finale, Dolores shared her thoughts on Danielle Cabral, 38, lunging at Jennifer Aydin, 47, when she shaded the masculinity of her husband Nate.
“When you attack somebody’s man, you know, we all run hard for our man, so she felt he would be so hurt when he heard that,” Dolores explained.
As for Melissa Gorga, 45, calling Terea “white trash” and Teresa calling Melissa a “wh*re,” Dolores admitted, “We’re getting used to this. They just got mad at each other like they always do.”
Regarding Fessler’s early exit, Dolores continued, “She’s not used to this. She’s not cut out — she’s not cut from this cloth. She’s like, ‘I’ve had enough.’”
Following the reveal of Jackie’s involvement with Luis’ ex, Dolores revealed why she believed Teresa had no reaction.
“I feel like, number one, she said Jackie wasn’t her friend. She said, ‘At one time me and Margaret were friends. I was never friends with Jackie. I expected that from her.’ The other thing is as long as she hates Margaret, she gets a pass,” Dolores suggested.
When asked if she believed Jackie released Luis’ controversial warrior video, Dolores admitted she was unsure.
“I don’t know who did it, Andy. I really can’t say. She said she didn’t so I have to say, unless she’s proven otherwise, I have to say I don’t know,” she stated.
While Rachel Fuda, 33, suspected that Luis wasn’t being honest with Teresa about everything in his life, Dolores didn’t agree, saying, “I think he’s open about it.”
Dolores was then asked about Joe saying that “scumbags hang with scumbags” after Paulie hung out with Luis.
“That wasn’t nice. It really wasn’t, but are we gonna pick apart every single thing? I know Luis, [Bill Aydin], and Paul are not scumbags. I mean that could go both ways also, so let’s just keep it there,” she noted, confirming Joe and Paulie are “good” now and “never had a problem.”
While answering a series of RHONJ-related questions, Dolores said Teresa should be more mad at Jackie than Margaret and stated that Jackie is “more likely” to have leaked stories about Luis. As for who was more responsible for their Tulum party fight, Dolores named Jennifer Aydin over Danielle.
The topic then returned to Paulie with Andy asking when he’d propose.
“I don’t know. We don’t know. We’re good right now. I want peace and I want a nice relationship,” Dolores responded, adding that Paulie is still “working” on getting divorced.
During last week’s RHONJ, Teresa called a meeting with her castmates and her attorney, James J. Leonard, Jr., in which she attempted to blast Margaret for her involvement with Luis’ ex.
“I know Teresa well enough to know that she wants everything in black and white and that was important for her to see that. For whatever it meant to us, maybe we weren’t so surprised but for her, it was closure,” Dolores shared of the meeting.
Also on the live broadcast, Dolores confirmed she was invited to Frank Catania‘s upcoming wedding to Brittany Mattessich, saying the “whole family’s going,” and commented on the watch party that will air in place of a reunion next week.
“I think we all felt more comfortable with the fact that it wasn’t a reunion. I think that finale was very hard on all of us and it was better that we watched it like we did,” she stated.
Later, on the WWHL: After Show, Dolores was asked if she was surprised to hear that Danielle and Teresa hadn’t spoken since production wrapped.
“Danielle and Teresa can come back. I didn’t see a big problem with them. I wasn’t surprised. No. I knew about it,” she replied.
The Real Housewives of New Jersey season 14 finale watch party begins Sunday, August 11, at 8/7c on Bravo.