Tom Sandoval Sparks Backlash After Comparing Cheating Scandal to George Floyd and O.J. Simpson: ‘The Disrespect’

Tom Sandoval is apologizing, this time after awkwardly comparing the attention his headline-grabbing cheating scandal garnered to that of OJ Simpson and George Floyd.

Tuesday, The New York Times Magazine published a long interview with Vanderpump Rules star, in which he discussed life after becoming what they called “the most hated man in America” ​​for hiding a months-long affair with then-co-star Rachel “Raquel” Leviss behind his girlfriend of nine years, Ariana Madix.

The article followed the fallout Sandoval received after his relationship with Leviss became public. But when asked why he thought the scandal, dubbed “Scandoval” by fans, had “become so big”, the 41-year-old reality star gave an answer that has since sparked backlash among viewers and Black Bravo stars alike.

“I’m not really a pop culture historian,” Sandoval said. “But I witnessed things with OJ Simpson and George Floyd and all these big things, which is really weird to compare this to that, I mean, but do you think in some weird way it’s kind of the same?”

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Tom Sandoval at the ‘Vanderpump Rules’ Season 11 Premiere in Los Angeles on January 17, 2024.

Amanda Edwards/Getty Images

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In the profile, author and interviewer Irina Aleksander tried to contextualize Sandoval’s answer.

“I think I knew what he meant,” she wrote. “He was trying to express the strangeness of becoming the symbolic center of debate across the country and mainstream news; what he communicated instead was something more honest, which was how much the experience had caused him to lose perspective.”

But she also noted that Bravo PR and Vanderpump Rules executive producer/showrunner Alex Baskin addressed her after the interview. “Everyone was worried,” Alexander wrote. “What exactly did he say about OJ Simpson and George Floyd? Maybe Sandoval wasn’t ready for this.”

Ready or not, Sandoval is feeling the heat. More Black Bravo stars — including The Real Housewives of MiamiGuerdy Abraira and Jordan Emanuel (Summer House: Martha’s Vineyard, Winter House) — Sandoval called out on Tuesday on social media.

Guerdy Abraira. Ivan Apfel/Getty Images

“Comparing a slingshot to a black man being murdered in front of our eyes during Black History Month is something I’m just speechless,” Emanuel, 31, wrote.

“Disrespect… and during Black History Month… WOW just please 🤫 🤐,” Abraira wrote, adding, “PLEASE consider this disgusting statement you made (regarding the GEORGE FLOYD rip), especially in Black History Month and take it back!! NOT OKAY! An apology is in order, sir.”

Other Bravo stars, incl RHOMIt is owned by Nicole Martin and Sandoval Vanderpump Rules Costar Katie Maloney also expressed their outrage.

Later Tuesday, Sandoval apologized. “My intentions behind the comments I made New York Times Magazine should have explained the level of national media attention my affair received,” he said, in a statement sent to PEOPLE. “The comparison was inappropriate and ignorant. I am incredibly sorry and embarrassed.”

Tom Sandoval Vows He’ll Never ‘Cheat Like That’ Again After World-Shook Affair — But Clarifies ‘I Love Hard’

Tom Sandoval, Ariana Madix and Rachel “Raquel” Leviss in November 2022.

Faye Sadou/Media Punch/Alamy

Simpson and Floyd weren’t the only names Sandoval brought up as a comparison in his interview with NY Times Magazine.

“I feel like I get more hate than Danny Masterson, and he’s a convicted rapist,” said Tom Sandoval & the Most Extras frontman, referring to the former Those 70s shows star, who was sentenced in September to 30 years to life in prison for raping two women.

“I did what I did because I was in an unhappy place in my life,” he said, summing up why he strayed in the first place. “I got emotional and fell completely in love. Like, really.”

However, he seemed to take all the hate calmly. “Scandal made the show so big that it’s kind of cool and crazy,” Sandoval told the publication. – Although it is negative and to my detriment.

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Vanderpump Rules airs Tuesdays at 8:00 PM ET on Bravo. All episodes can be streamed on Peacock.

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Source: HIS Education