Fans are not here for Tom Schwartz’s Thanksgiving reunion with Tom Sandoval and former Vanderpump Rules costar Jax Taylor.
“Got the band back together,” Schwartz, 41, wrote via his Instagram Story on Thursday, November 23, sharing a photo of himself, Sandoval, 41, and Taylor, 44. The trio were enjoying the holiday at Schwartz & Sandy’s Lounge, which is co-owned by Schwartz and Sandoval.
Schwartz later hinted that there were some not-so-nice replies to his Thanksgiving pic.
“I just glanced at my DM’s, maybe we shouldn’t get the band back together,” he wrote in a second Instagram Story post.
Several Pump Rules viewers weighed in on the reunion, with one Bravo fan account joking that Schwartz was “humbled by his DMs real quick” upon posting the photo.
“Oh Lord. I am not sure how I feel about this,” another social media user commented on @bravominions post. In a response, the account holder also noted they also had “mixed feelings about” the picture.
Schwartz’s post came shortly after he stated during the latest episode of Bravo’s Winter House that he was “on a break” from his friendship with Sandoval.
“I need a break from Tom, and I think he should shave his mustache,” Schwartz said on the Tuesday, November 21, episode.
Winter House season 3 started filming in March, days after Us Weekly confirmed that Sandoval had cheated on girlfriend of nine years Ariana Madix with fellow Pump Rules star Raquel Leviss.
Both Schwartz and Sandoval were set to make the trip to Colorado for a brief stint on Winter House, but only Schwartz appeared on the show in the wake of Sandoval’s cheating scandal.
Schwartz and Sandoval’s friendship was impacted by the affair, but the twosome seem to have recovered. Initially, Schwartz defended his longtime friend, asking fans to have some mercy on Sandoval.
“First of all, Ariana, love you. I know you don’t love me right now, but I still love you. And also, Tom, I know the whole world hates you. But I’m not going to abandon you, old buddy. I’m not going to abandon you,” Schwartz said on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen in April. “He knows he’s a monster for what he did. If you see him, maybe give him a hug. Even if he doesn’t deserve it, give him a hug. He’s down bad.”
He appeared to change his tune a bit when the Pump Rules season 10 reunion aired the following month. Schwartz outright told Sandoval he “f—ked up” and put their businesses at risk. (Along with Schwartz & Sandy’s, the twosome co-own the bar TomTom.)
“I exhausted my soul for Schwartz & Sandy’s. I put everything I had into it,” Schwartz said at the reunion. “And now to think this place could fall apart because of Tom’s affair is soul-crushing.”
Schwartz’s friendship break from Sandoval was short-lived, however, as the two hung out at BravoCon earlier this month. Schwartz reflected on Scandoval during the three-day convention, telling Us Weekly exclusively he became “guilty by association” to Sandoval.
“It was very bizarre at times,” he explained. “I could appreciate the absurdity of it, but other times it was very sad and kind of terrifying.”
Taylor, for his part, was an integral member of the Pump Rules cast from its premiere in 2013 until his departure from the show in 2020.
He was quick to criticize Sandoval after news of his affair broke, exclusively telling Us that his former costar has “a few screws loose.”
“I think he’s going through something,” Taylor told Us in July. “I don’t want to say midlife crisis, but he’s definitely going through something. I think he’s had a little bit of a diva mentality on the show, where he kind of thinks nothing could touch him, and I think he kind of bit off a little more than he can chew.”
