‘RHONJ’: What Caroline Manzo Says is the Biggest Misconception About Her
Fans of The Real Housewives of New Jersey will always remember Caroline Manzo as being the mama bear of the group. She fearlessly went against Danielle Staub and Teresa Giudice, and some fans didn’t walk away with the best perception of her. But Manzo says she’s largely misunderstood by viewers, revealing that the biggest misconception about her is her personality.
Caroline Manzo reveals the biggest misconception about her from appearing on ‘RHONJ’
Manzo appeared on RHONJ from Season 1-5. While on the show, she was the fierce protector and matriarch of her tight-knit family and went against anyone who jeopardized it. The reality star was deemed bland and stoic by viewers, and she came off as having a higher moral compass than others while judging her co-stars and friends of the show. But Manzo says her personality was blown out of proportion.
“I’m the most easygoing person alive,” Manzo said when asked what was the biggest misconception about her during her appearance on the Two Ts in a Pod podcast. “I don’t give a lot to the cameras because we, I think as housewives, we all have a little bit of PTSD that you don’t know what’s going to happen so you’re very, very reserved. I’m not the monster they say I am,” she added.
Manzo famously said throughout the show, “Caroline don’t dance,” whenever at a party function on the show. She says she sings and dances and participates in fun activities with her family but would never do so on Bravo due to a moment she watched play out with Ramona Singer on RHONY.
“Years ago, they did that to Ramona. She was dancing — and she probably was dancing fine — but they put this music to her that she looked like a freaking a–. And I’m like … ‘I’m not gonna do that because I don’t know what they’re gonna do with it,’” Manzo explained.
Why she says she left the show
Manzo’s family drama played out on RHONJ, starting in Season 2 when it was revealed that she and her youngest sister, Dina, were estranged. Dina left the show midway through the season, and the two remain estranged today. Manzo also bickered with Teresa Giudice beginning at the Season 3 reunion and continued until she exited the series. She eventually landed her own spinoff, Manzo’d With Children.
In an interview with Bravo’s The Daily Dish, Manzo says she left the show came because the show became too much of a burden.
“There wasn’t a final straw, the burden became too heavy in my personal life,” Manzo began. “You can’t work with something that doesn’t reflect your beliefs. The show became something that just didn’t reflect my beliefs or who I was as a person. It’s not about the money, it’s not about the fame – it’s about your moral compass and how you live your life.”
She says she will never return to ‘RHONJ’
Manzo never returned to RHONJ but did appear on Season 4 of the forthcoming Ultimate Girls Trip. However, she reporetdly left midway through filming after allegedly being sexually assaulted by Brandi Glanville. The show has yet to air, but Manzo promises all will be revealed when it does.
As a result of her last experience, Manzo says she has no plans on returning to the franchise, saying on the podcast: “Over the years, multiple times, I’ve been asked, this last season being one of them. [But] I walked away for a reason. For me to go back, it would have to be something that was… a number that was financially irresponsible to walk away from. Financially irresponsible. Like how do you walk away? And I’ve been offered a lot of money in the real world, I guess, but it’s just never anything that was worth it to me to go back to that….This was very traumatic for me…This is a really large onion with a lot of layers, and I guess it’ll play out. That statement’s disappointing to me. I don’t want to talk too much about it cuz I’m going through a lot with it, and I’m processing it all.”
