Vanderpump Rules’ Raquel Leviss sues Ariana Madix, Tom Sandoval over revenge porn

Former Vanderpump Rules star turned “most hated woman in America” Rachel “Raquel” Leviss is suing her fellow “Scandoval” castmates for, among other things, sharing “sexually explicit videos of her without her knowledge or consent.” Per Deadline, the suit also accuses Bravo and Evolution Media, the show’s producers, of silencing her by misrepresenting her contract.

Scandoval was a reality TV storyline involving an affair between Sandoval and Leviss while Sandoval was in a 10-year romantic relationship with Madix. The whole thing kicked into gear when Madix discovered a sexually explicit FaceTime recording with Leviss on Sandoval’s phone. The story arc garnered the biggest ratings of the show’s run and its first two Emmy nominations. In addition to seeking unspecified damages for her treatment, Leviss’ lawyers want all copies of the tape destroyed and demand that no one see it again.

“‘Scandoval’ injected new life into a previously faltering series, causing its viewership to explode to unseen levels and making its cast members mega-celebrities,” the complaint states. “Due to a narrative deliberately fomented by Bravo, Evolution, and the cast, Leviss became an object of public scorn and ridicule.”

Leviss had previously discussed the tape on Bethenny Frankel’s podcast, which, it should be noted, also became the subject of much scrutiny.

“I decided to be adventurous and look at the adult section on the TV, and Tom and I FaceTimed a lot, so it turned into something more of an intimate FaceTime,” Leviss said. “I expected to have privacy in that moment, so that happened.”

Later, she received a text from Ariana, sending her “two screen recorded videos and a text that said, ‘you’re dead to me,’ and that’s how I knew that she knew […] That’s how I found out I had been recorded without my consent, so of course all of these emotions came flooding over me.”

The suit reframes the treatment of Leviss, who has, as the suit states, “became an object of public scorn and ridicule,” “was subjected to a public skewering with little precedent, and became, without exaggeration, one of the most hated women in America.” Leviss, the suit argues, “repeatedly acknowledged” wrongdoing in the affair and “has offered numerous apologies.” However, “lost in the mix was that Leviss was a victim of the predatory and dishonest behavior of an older man.” That man, Tom Sandoval, 11 years Leviss’ senior, has also been among the most hated men in America, but his visibility has increased. He’s still the star of one of television’s hottest shows and, as The A.V. Club has often asserted, is in the middle of a redemption arc on the series. Not so for Leviss, who spent three months in a mental health facility after the fallout as “Bravo, Evolution, and the cast milked the interest her excoriation had peaked.”

To be clear, Bravo and Evolution are not defendants, but they are named. The suit accuses both of misleading Leviss, their employee, “into believing that she was contractually barred from speaking out about her mistreatment.” While infidelity is the engine that all reality television runs on, revenge porn is not. Nevertheless, Bravo, Evolution, and the rest of the cast enjoyed a ratings bonanza, a massive increase in media exposure, and career opportunities for its stars.

It does appear as though Bethenny Frankel’s “reality reckoning” is continuing in various forms because this is not the only issue weighing down Bravo at the moment. In the past week, two Bravo stars have accused Andy Cohen of inappropriate behavior, including sexual harassment and giving favorable treatment to Bravo stars who do cocaine with him. Cohen denies the allegations, but as with all things Vanderpump Rules, the truth always comes out.