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Inside ‘RHONJ’ Stars Teresa Giudice, Joe and Melissa Gorga’s Longtime Feud: Timeline
The drama continues! The Real Housewives of New Jersey feud between Teresa Giudice and Melissa Gorga doesn’t look like it’s slowing down any time soon.
“She’s always wanted to keep my brother and I apart. She got her wish,” the “Namaste B$tches” podcast host said, referring to her sister-in-law during RHONJ season 13. While the longtime rift has always been between Teresa and Melissa, Joe Gorga often finds himself caught between his sister and wife.
Why Are ‘RHONJ’ Stars Teresa and Melissa Feuding?
While the sister-in-law have been going at it for years, things appeared to come to a head at some point in 2022. According to the BestofBravo fan Instagram account, the feud stemmed from rumors that Melissa had cheated on her husband, Joe.
“There’s a lot of rumors that come out about me, and you know what? We just keep hitting ’em, swatting ’em like flies, [and] they just keep coming,” Melissa told Us Weekly in August 2022, seemingly addressing the allegations. Joe added, “It’s been tough.”
Months later, Teresa’s ex-husband, Joe Giudice, seemingly weighed in on the feud. When sharing a photo to celebrate her friend’s birthday in January 2023, Teresa wrote, “Happy Birthday to the sister I’ve always dreamed of,” in an Instagram post. According to a screenshot shared by the Comments By Celebs Instagram account, Joe replied in a since-deleted comment, writing, “I thought you loved Melissa.”
That March, Melissa shared that she wanted Teresa and her daughters Gia, Gabriella, Milania and Audriana to “be happy.” “They’re in this, you know, new stage of life with a new man,” she told Extra at the time. “And I’m happy for her. … Sometimes it’s just toxic and it’s like, at what point do you say, ‘OK, I’m done with a back and forth? I just want to make it better at this point.’ I want to be able to be in the same room.”
However, gloves were off at the RHONJ season 13 reunion when Melissa called Teresa’s husband, Louis “Louie” Ruelas, a “bitch boy” for telling Joe that she was cheating on him and pushing him to leave her. Teresa, for her part, told her brother that he could “do better” than Melissa.
Why Didn’t ‘RHONJ’ Stars Melissa and Joe Attend Teresa’s Wedding?
When Teresa and Louis tied the knot in August 2022, Melissa and Joe were noticeably absent. They skipped out on the ceremony after Teresa seemingly spread cheating rumors about Melissa.
“I found out a few days before my wedding that they weren’t coming. I’m totally fine with it,” Teresa said on an episode of the “Namaste B$tches” podcast following the ceremony. “You’ll see it play out on TV … The way that everything played out with my wedding, everything that happened is the way it was supposed to be. I’m all about that. I’m all about good energy, and whoever wanted to be at my wedding was there.”
Did Melissa Gorga Cheat on Husband Joe Gorga?
Instagram fan account BestofBravo alleged that Teresa’s feud with the Gorgas originally came from rumors that Melissa cheated on her husband. However, it appears the rumors are baseless.
The cheating allegations aren’t the first time, though, that Teresa has accused Melissa of cheating on Joe. In June 2013, Teresa believed that Melissa had an affair with a former boyfriend. Joe then called his sister “scum” for spreading the rumor during an episode of RHONJ, and he even got into a physical fight with Teresa’s then-husband, Joe, while on a trip to Lake George.
Where Do ‘RHONJ’ Stars Teresa and Melissa Stand Now?
Melissa gave a major update on the “sad situation” while speaking with E! News in December 2022.
“It’s upsetting that there’s a lot of tit for tat going on,” the Envy by Melissa Gorga owner explained. “It’s starting to feel like people are using things as ways to win the audience over. When I don’t, I don’t like that. I don’t respect that as much.”
When comparing the RHONJ stars to other Housewives franchises, Melissa explained that they have “a knockdown, drag-out fight, but they leave it.” However, with the New Jersey ladies, “There’s deeper feelings and it’s rough, but it is what it is at this point.”
The tension between the sisters-in-law did not calm down over the holiday season or the new year. In fact, when the RHONJ season 13 reunion taping rolled around on April 20, 2023, Andy Cohen almost removed himself from set because the fighting between Melissa and Teresa allegedly got so bad.
“I’ve gotta tell you, the level — I won’t even say vitriol, I will say hate — between Teresa and Melissa,” he started on the April 24 episode of his radio show Andy Cohen Live. “The gloves are off. I’ve never seen anything like it. And the way the two of them were going back and forth, it was that thing of neither wanted the other to have the last word in any petty fight.” He went on to say that he was not only “so annoyed” by their behavior, but that, “I almost walked off at one point.”
Fast forward to BravoCon in November and the not-so-friendly sisters-in-law did not sit on the same panel together and gave fans an unpleasant update about their feud.
“That chapter’s closed,” Teresa told Us Weekly at the event on November 3. “I don’t even want to comment on it. It’s been so long now. I am so over that.”
