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Credit: Instagram
Melissa Gorga confirmed that she and her husband, Joe Gorga, made Christmas plans with his sister, Teresa Giudice, and her husband, Luis Ruelas, and she revealed whether cameras will be filming. Around the same time, a source shared that the reconciliation “feel[s] like a publicity stunt.”
Earlier this year, Teresa and her brother announced that they made up amid their years-long feud. Their show, Real Housewives of New Jersey, reportedly was put on pause in part because of the families’ unwillingness to film together.
On Reality Hot Seat, Melissa was asked if she and Joe will spend Christmas with Teresa and Luis.
“Yes, we will,” she answered. “At my house.”
“It’s a Christmas miracle!” said fellow guest Kate Chastain.
“I know,” said Melissa.
Another guest, Heather Gay, asked if cameras will be filming it.
“No,” Melissa answered. “I know. Bravo, where you at? … But you know, it’s kind of nice to do it without the cameras, I have to be honest. Because … we need this time, this healing moment.”
Meanwhile, a source told Radar Online that the reconciliation is coming off as a “publicity stunt.”
“In Teresa’s mind, she likely figured a way to get the show to ultimately return would be to throw in the towel and make up with her brother and her sister-in-law,” the source added. “So this got her on board with going ahead with it.”
“Once she reached out to her brother, Joe Gorga, he obviously had to get Melissa on board with the idea of reuniting with Teresa, given the bad blood that there has been throughout the years,” said the source. “It’s likely the show coming back was a significant factor in her mind in finally agreeing to attempt to move forward with Teresa.”
Last week on Instagram, Teresa uploaded a video of herself at dinner with her husband Luis, Joe, and Melissa. In the initial post, Teresa was seen with only Luis and Joe, though she explained that her sister-in-law was in the bathroom.
Soon after, she included a post showing Melissa; according to the insider, this was intentional.
“They wanted it known that they were all there together as one big happy family,” said the source. “It does feel like a publicity stunt, as if it wasn’t just for the show. Why do they need to document this all on Instagram? … They showed themselves off at BravoCon multiple times, and now they’re showing the world they’re out to dinner together. They want people to see what’s happening, and they want this to hopefully lead to the return of the show.”
“No cameras have gone up, and no one has gotten a call about any filming happening,” the insider continued. “There have been no new developments regarding the show returning. This is unfortunate for fans, as they do want to see it come back, but… as of now, it remains at a standstill.”
The source shared that the “entire cast” was released from contracts, and the network’s hold over them has expired: “Too much time has passed, and the stars of RHONJ are free to do what they want.”
