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It says something about the public fascination with a reality TV scandal when even peripheral characters are getting interviewed by outlets like Rolling Stone. Charli Burnett is a “server” in one of Lisa Vanderpump’s restaurants, an actress, an esthetician, and a “hustler” as Rolling Stone describes her. She wears many hats and joined the Vanderpump Rules cast in 2019 when it seemed the show was starting to shift to a new and younger cast before a bunch of them were fired for racism. Anyway, Charli is more of a background character (which is important, more shows need these) and she seemed to be paired with Raquel a lot in season 10 due to their similar ages and life stages. Charli weighed in on Scandoval in a Rolling Stone piece and I liked reading her thoughts because she knows more than us but she’s not one of the main players. Some highlights:
On being an unknowing accomplice to Scandoval: It’s been months since Charli last saw or heard from Raquel, when they both attended a watch party for the premiere of Vanderpump Rules Season 10 in the winter. Charli thought it was strange that Raquel tried to socialize with her and her boyfriend that night instead of Ariana, Scheana, and the other cast members she was typically closer to. “We haven’t spoken in like, four or five months, and you’re trying to be my friend in front of these people. Why is that? That’s so weird,” Charli said. “Then weeks later, the news broke. I’m starting to realize they had a plan to slowly pull away. Now looking back, even that night seems calculated.”
Shading Raquel’s pageant history: Although they didn’t become closer until they filmed Vanderpump Rules together, Charli says she knew Raquel and her family, who she says are very involved in Raquel’s life even as an adult, because they both participated in California pageants, an experience Raquel opened up about on the show. “It was weird to me when she was crying about that. It’d be different if you almost won, but you’ve never even placed in the top five,” Charli reveals.
Not questioning the sus things that happened: After Raquel showed up late to a menu tasting at SUR and revealed she slept at Sandoval’s house the night before while Ariana was out of town for her grandmother’s funeral, Charli says she asked her, “What the f-ck is going on? Why are you being so weird? What’s going on with you?” Still, though, Charli didn’t suspect Raquel and Sandoval were having an affair because she says it was “very normal” for members of their friend group to party and crash at Sandoval and Ariana’s home. “It didn’t seem like anything too far-fetched to question. And I think a lot of us were letting Ariana take the lead with things,” Charli says. “If she didn’t question it or she didn’t make a big deal or get upset, then why would other people?”
On Tom Sandoval’s “cult leader vibes”: “When [Raquel] made the throuple comment I was like, Tom has to have these cult leader vibes, where he convinces people what they’re doing is OK,” Charli says. “I think it’s a very dark, twisted, mind-control game and I honestly hope she gets out of it. To be honest, the best way that I would think she would be out of it is her not returning to the show and completely removing herself from the situation.” “To me, she seems like she’s in this vulnerable, needy stage because what was her thought process when she was doing this? I believe Tom had to be feeding her stuff and it had to be a whole mind game because she felt OK doing the bad things,” Charli says.
Charli made the “cult leader” comment a couple of times throughout the piece, and I honestly think that’s giving Sandoval too much credit and not enough agency to Raquel. Much has been speculated about her parents’ involvement in her adult life and I don’t think she’s the brightest bulb, but I don’t think Sandoval manipulated her to the extent that some people are suggesting. He is manipulative, sure. And he may have been the mastermind of the attempted strategy to break-up with Ariana and start dating Raquel with clean hands (and look how well that turned out), but I think Raquel had an affair with him because she wanted to do so and she plays the adult baby card with everyone as way to deflect blame. Like, I don’t think she’s smart, but I think she’s savvier than everyone thinks or wants to think. But it makes sense that her former friend Charli would want to believe she was manipulated. What Charli said about following Ariana’s lead and not questioning things Ariana seemed to be fine with also makes sense. Another thing that makes sense — Charli lent a bit of credence to the rumors that old cast members might come back, saying “I don’t know how that will look but I imagine they’re probably going to come back with a force because they want to keep that spot again. They don’t want to lose that paycheck.” If this is true, it will be a bad 11th season for Sandoval. Filming is supposed to start soon.
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