Rachel Zoe has been fielding requests to return to TV for years. Specifically, she’s been asked to return to the network that made her a reality TV star.
The Rachel Zoe Project followed stylist-to-the-stars Zoe from 2008-2013 on Bravo. When she ended her run, she was about to have her second son, and she largely stepped away from the cameras while she grew her eponymous fashion brand into a Rachel Zoe empire. Flash-forward more than a decade later, and she’s made her return to Bravo on the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills — ironically, at a time when she was separating from her husband of 26 years, Rodger Berman, a fixture of her first Bravo show.
“Listen, people have been asking me to come back to TV — and specifically to Bravo — for the last. decade,” she tells The Hollywood Reporter, as the third episode of Zoe being a Real Housewife airs. “The stars aligned. It felt right for a myriad of reasons,” she says, adding with a laugh, “It definitely goes back to a list of things I said I’d never do — and here I am!”
In the conversation below, Zoe opens up about why she decided to share her life with the world again, if she has Berman’s support to rejoin the Bravo-verse and how she’s unapologetically shaking things up as The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills enters a new era. “There may be moments where I’m too honest, but it is who I am now,” she says. “I think it’s who I’ve always been, but now I’m less afraid. I’m less guarded.”
***
I’m very excited you’re back on Bravo. I’ve read more than one article asking if your return will revive The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, now in its 15th season. Do you feel pressure when you hear that?
(Laughs.) I really came into this as blind as you could. I don’t think I could have been less informed about what I was entering, and that’s just because I don’t have that much of a life. I don’t watch much television and I had never seen a Real Housewives show of any county, ever. I entered by talking to [executive producer] Alex Baskin at 32 Flavors, the production company. Andy Cohen asked me, “Do you know what you’re getting into?” I was like, “No, actually. I really don’t.” (Laughs.) I said, “But I do feel an overwhelming desire and need to share what I’m living and going through.”
I just feel like I need to help as many women as possible who are going through different moments in their lives that could be painful or exciting. It means something different to everybody when they end a marriage or a relationship of any kind.
I read that you signed onto the show and started filming right away. How quickly?
I signed onto the show June 6 at 2 p.m., and I started filming the next day at like 11 a.m.
Are you always so impulsive?
(Laughs.) We had been talking for a bit prior, probably two months of back and forth. But I didn’t know it was a green light until I was literally on my way to [son] Sky’s middle school graduation. I signed in the car on the way there and as I was videoing him coming down the line at graduation, my phone started blowing up. Bravo announced it, and I was shooting the next day.
Your first scenes on the show saw you opening up about separating from Rodger Berman [Zoe’s husband of 26 years]. We see you in this authentic, vulnerable way that felt familiar to anyone who watched your first Bravo show. On RHOBH, a lot of the women have gotten flak for not being as open. Do you feel like the more you opened up, the more some of your other castmates opened up about their parallel experiences?
For better or for worse, I’m very unaware of the cameras. That can be a good thing, but sometimes I’ll get home from shooting and be like, “What did I just say?” I sort of black it out. My life this summer was really unraveling in real time. And I say that not to play the victim. In fact, I think it’s quite the opposite. What I felt coming into the show was this responsibility or overall desire to help not only women around the world who are watching, but also this group of women I was meeting and getting to know.
You see in the first episode when I start learning about Dorit [Kemsley]’s situation. I had never met her. I don’t know PK [Kemsley; the pair are separated]. If he walked in and sat next to me, I wouldn’t know him. I was outside looking in, saying, “Why are you staying home? He’s making out with girls on the sidewalk in Beverly Hills. Hell no. We’re going out. We’re going to have some fun. I’m not going to watch you dissolve.” That was where I was coming from. That is how I am in real life. I’m going to help women own who they are and their strength, so they can look at things like, “How can I take this and redefine myself, and figure out who I actually am without this person?”
But when you ask about pressure, I didn’t feel any of that because I didn’t even know people were saying that until recently. These women are so great and so entertaining. Everyone’s so different and has different opinions, and I think that’s what makes the dynamic so unpredictable. People who have been watching in these diehard ways — as I saw at BravoCon! — are committed. They know certain things Dorit, Kyle [Richards], or Erika [Jayne] may say, but I was new and getting to know them in real time.
This franchise has also evolved. When Real Housewives started, it was about housewives showing off their marriages, families, lives and homes. Now, RHOBH has a main cast of divorcées entering their next era.
Yes, it’s not that anymore! I told Andy he probably has to change the name.
Could you have imagined being on this show when you were married?
I think I could have. But it depends if I was in the happy part of my marriage or towards the end. I think it would have been hard for me to hide what I was going through or feeling. But really, just put me in a room with interesting women, or people in general, and I’m going to go. I watched clips of the first episode and understood why Boz [Saint John] had texted me on the first day of filming, “You just went for it!” At the time, I was like, “Went for what?” I honestly didn’t realize how honest and direct I was right away.
Your two children are also on the show. Was there anything off limits around what you were going to share, or any rules you and Rodger set?
My kids and I are so inseparable. We talk about pretty much everything pretty openly and honestly. I don’t speak badly about their dad to them. My dream, truthfully, is that they have the best relationship with their dad. I don’t think it’s about having two parents who are married, especially unhappily married. I think it’s about having two parents who love them and who they’re close with.
I obviously asked the kids [about the show], because I would never have them be on it if they didn’t want to be. And they really were the reason I did the show. They wanted me to do it. They were like, “It’s time for you to go back to doing you, Mom. You’ve been the best mom. You are the best mom, but if this is something you need to do, you should do it.” I told them they didn’t need to be on it, but in all fairness, I do think it was important to everyone involved that they were in some capacity. When the Bravo audience left me 10 years ago, they knew I had kids. I stopped filming two weeks before I had Kaius. They know I have children, so they should see them. They aren’t on it that much — more at the beginning and the end, because they were away for the summer. But I didn’t limit them. And I don’t think there’s anything [on the show] that would make them uncomfortable.
Your divorce journey will play out over the season. [Note: They began filming in early summer, Zoe and filed for divorce in July.] Is Rodger supportive of you being on the show? Has he watched?
I don’t know, I don’t think he’s watched. He obviously knows I’m back on TV. Is he supportive? Yeah. He was supportive of me doing it. Look, it’s my job. This is work for me. This is not because I have an overwhelming desire to be famous. I’ve been pretty quiet for the last [10 years], relatively so. I look at this as a part of my job, and it is work. I think he supports me doing what I need to do, but he has not been involved in this process at all.
Let’s talk about your tagline: “I’d die for fashion, but now, I’m living for me.”
I didn’t even understand what a tagline was! When I signed on, everyone was like, “What’s your tagline?” I’m like, “What are you even talking about?!” It was something that happened fairly recently. I had friends from all over the world being like, “I have an idea.” I was like, “Great, send it.” Some of them were so silly. I just went for straight and simple. This was the one I can hear myself maybe saying out loud.
Your entrance was cinematic and dramatic. You talk about being unapologetically you.
I remember filming that, literally the day after Sky’s graduation, and being like, “Here we go!” I walked down a street and everything I said was actually really accurate. I am, for better or for worse, unapologetically myself. (Laughs.) And I can’t act; I’ve never tried. I just hope people take away what I want them to take away. I hope it comes off how it’s intended, and as real as I meant it to be. I tried to really just be me and be honest. There may be moments where I’m too honest, honestly! But it is who I am now. I think it’s who I’ve always been, but now I’m less afraid. I’m less guarded.
Why do you think that is?
With my last show, so much of what I was protecting was other people. I had to protect designers, my clients and photographers; so many things that weren’t about me. “If I say this about this designer, that could cost them a million dollars in sales.” Now, this is about me. If I fuck this up, I’m the one who gets hurt. But when I had my last show, I didn’t have children. Now I have a teen and a preteen who, especially my teen, hear and see everything. There’s not a lot I can hide. So if I overstepped or maybe shouldn’t have been as open or honest about something, Sky’s going to hear that. That’s the biggest challenge of doing this entire thing, because this talks about my former marriage.
Has there been anything you’ve read or seen about yourself that you thought was wild?
I don’t love how people were saying, “Kyle better watch out.” I love Kyle. Like, that’s the dumbest thing ever. Don’t do that. That upsets me. First of all, that’s ridiculous. And second of all, I don’t like people pinning girls on each other. They’re [the cast] all probably very used to it by now, but I like to play nice in the sandbox. I never come from a place like that. I think there’s a place for everybody. Everyone in this show is so different. Everyone has really different opinions, and I think that’s the magic of any of these shows. Everyone has something to say and a different way to say it.
You came in knowing Kathy Hilton the most, and Kyle by extension, as well as Boz, from her being on your podcast. Who surprised you the most by the end of the season?
I got really close with Erika [Jayne]. I really love Erika. I’m very close with Dorit, and, of course, Boz. The first episode was my first time ever seeing or meeting Dorit or Erika. When Erika introduced herself, she said, “Hi, I’m Rachel.” (Laughs.) I don’t remember that, but I remember being slightly intimidated by her. I’m used to big hellos and warm, big personalities. I very soon became so drawn to her because she is who she is. She is so direct and so fearless in what she says and how she feels. I’m attracted to people like that because I want to feed off that. And she’s been through it. God, has she been through it.
I imagine one of the biggest differences for you this time around is that you’re not an executive producer, which means you’re not in control of the edit. How has it been to relinquish that?
That’s what Andy said to me. He was like, “You won’t have control over this.” Every week I’m like, “Somebody tell me what happens!” If you put a gun to my head, I wouldn’t be able to tell you what I said in an episode.
You styled yourself this season. Of all your co-stars, whose closet were you most excited to be welcomed into?
Listen, everybody’s different. Everyone has such a totally opposite style to one another. I don’t see any overlap at all. If you threw us in a massive closet, everybody would go for different things. But I always do say Jennifer Tilly, because she has such an extraordinary collection of couture and Dolce & Gabbana and head pieces and David Webb jewelry. We had this thing for most of the season where we would walk into whatever we were doing and within 10 minutes, I would have to take a piece of her jewelry off and wear it for the rest of the day. She has extraordinary jewelry, like incredible.
After wrapping one season as a Real Housewife, would you do another season?
Let’s see if the audience wants me back!
Let’s assume the audience wants you back.
Yeah. I would. I would definitely. Some of these girls are like family now. I’m not going to say which ones. (Laughs.)
Would you ever consider a spinoff with just your family and brand?
I think I’m in this Yes era. The time of me questioning and overthinking everything to death is long gone. I’m in this really big, “Yes, maybe or I’ll consider it” era. Because it feels better right now. I’ve certainly laughed more in the last year and a half than I’ve laughed in a really, really long time. I’m just trying to laugh and dance through life a bit more. And just say “yes.”
You did drop this bomb that people tried to set you up with Kyle’s estranged husband, Mau [Umansky], in the premiere.
By the way, that’s what I’m talking about. I said that so flippantly. I was in Aspen for a music festival and I ran into a lot of old friends I hadn’t seen who were like, “How’s single life? Oh, do you know Mau? He’s here in Aspen and single.” It’s like because two people are getting divorced, they should go out. I’m like, “That’s Kyle’s ex-husband. I’m not dating Kyle’s ex-husband. No.” In hindsight, I said that so flippantly [on the show], and it’s haunting me. The same way I said flippantly that we should have a hot girl summer. I can’t tell you how much that’s haunted me over the last couple of weeks! I have to be a little more mindful of what comes out of my mouth. (Laughs.)
What does dating Rachel Zoe look like right now?
I definitely have a type. Turns out my type when I was 16 is not that different. I skew younger. Here’s the thing: I don’t need from a guy what a lot of women are still going after guys for. I don’t mean that in a bad way. But for me, dating is a value ad thing. Are we going to have fun? Are we going to laugh? Are we going to have endless conversation? Am I attracted to you? All of these very simple, basic things. And, are we a mind match? Can you challenge me? Those are the things that interest me. It sounds so simple, but that’s what dating has been for me, and I imagine will not change. Are we going to laugh all night? Are we going to go deep about things that are interesting to both of us? I want to be fascinated by someone. I want to be intrigued by somebody. I want to laugh, first and foremost.
Where do you see yourself in five years, both in your professional and personal life?
My career would be about continuing to expand the Rachel Zoe brand. I’m in over 40 categories across so many different things, like sleepwear and fragrance. I just launched rugs, and I’m doing all these really incredible things that help to have the Rachel Zoe brand in people’s homes and have them wearing it. That makes me so happy. It would be growing that to its full potential and continuing to try and help as many women as possible across everything I do — like with the new podcast [Climbing in Heels] and the show and any endorsements I do; and obviously still being a hands-on mom and dating great guys. I want to always love getting up every day and love what I do. I feel so lucky for that.
I feel like I really now have my fire back in knowing my purpose and why I’m here, and with what I do and want to continue to do. In as many ways as I can keep doing that, and touch as many people as I can while I do it, I want to remain relatable and accessible. I think that’s the job. That’s what I’m here for.
I started my career by trying to make fashion accessible to everybody, and now I feel like it’s about helping everyone have this incredible lifestyle across all areas. But also taking care of ourselves and figuring out what that means physically, emotionally, spiritually, financially and independently for all women. There has been such an overwhelming response from women going through this and being like, “I feel like I’m in therapy, thank you.” If that’s what this is doing, then great. If I can make someone feel seen, then I’m the happiest.
***
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills airs new episodes Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on Bravo, streaming the next day on Peacock.
Read the full article here
