Rachel “Raquel” Leviss thinks Tom Sandoval feels like she’s been given “the short end of the stick” after her personal entanglement with her costar exploded on screen during the 10th season of Vanderpump Rules this past spring.
Five and a half months after it became public knowledge that Leviss and Sandoval had been in a months-long affair behind the back of his then-girlfriend of nine years Ariana Madix, Leviss says Sandoval has reaped professional benefits from the Bravo show’s surging success, while she’s fallen into debt and had to take a step back for her mental health.
“He’s not technically a producer, he’s been on the series from day 1, season 1. I don’t know if I’m even able to disclose this information, but he did tell me during negotiations for season 11 that he was offered a producer credit for season 11,” Leviss, 28, told Bethenny Frankel on The Real Housewives of New York City alum’s Just B podcast.
To Leviss, Sandoval’s alleged upgrade was a pat on the back. “So, I think he was being rewarded for the Scandoval of it all. To me, that’s kind of gross because it seems — it makes me skeptical,” she continued. “Was this really just something that was fabricated for this end result?”
But Bravo has denied Leviss’s claims, issuing a statement to PEOPLE: “Tom Sandoval was never offered a producer credit on season 11 and had absolutely no creative control over editing during any season of Vanderpump Rules.” (PEOPLE has also reached out to Sandoval’s rep.)
Raquel Leviss ‘Would Have Said No’ to Secret Intimate Recording by Tom Sandoval That Exposed ‘VPR’ Scandal
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Leviss also claimed Sandoval, 40, demanded more control over season 10 editing when conversation surrounding an intimate video he screen-recorded — unbeknownst to Leviss — during a FaceTime became potential fodder for the Bravo show.
“If he would’ve asked for permission, I would’ve said no,” Leviss said, adding that during pickup filming, “I said to Tom, ‘How can I trust you? You filmed me without my consent.’ And he admitted to it, but then after that scene wrapped he said, ‘Why did you say that? why did you say that on camera? You made me look bad. And I was like, ‘Well because that’s what happened.’”
According to Leviss, the Schwartz & Sandy’s co-owner “ended up boycotting filming the rest of Scandoval so he could have editing rights to that scene.”
Complicating matters, Leviss’s attorneys sent a legal notice to several members of the cast, including Sandoval in March. The letter, which was viewed by PEOPLE at the time, claimed the video was recorded “illegally” and “without the permission” of their client. The notice also ordered anyone with access to the recording to delete it from their phones, the cloud or “any other manner or method in which the recording may exist.”
Raquel Leviss Says Love Addiction Is ‘a Real Thing’ That ‘Explains’ Her Relationship with Tom Sandoval
On Thursday’s podcast, Frankel also pointed out that, while Leviss’s story drove a record-breaking season of Vanderpump Rules for Bravo, the former pageant queen herself wasn’t assured any material share of that success — even as her medical care has created unforeseen expenses.
“You’re in a deficit. You’re in debt,” said Frankel, 52. ”Interesting.”
In Wednesday’s part 1 of the Just B conversation, Leviss recounted why she started her relationship with Sandoval while he was in a relationship with Madix, 38. She chalked the decision up to “love addiction” but also claimed Madix and Sandoval’s relationship “hasn’t been what they portray on camera.”
“I would not be involved in this affair secrecy type of situation if I thought there was longevity in this relationship between Tom and Ariana,” she added.
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The first 10 seasons of Vanderpump Rules can be streamed in full on Peacock.
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