For the first time in his reality TV career, Jax Taylor is breaking up the fight instead of starting it.
In a sneak peek of next week’s episode, The Valley cast is at odds after a tense group dinner where Jesse Lally and Michelle Lally call Kristen Doute out for sharing a rumors she heard that Michelle is allegedly racist.
“You should go. And you know what? That face right there. That is why nobody feels sorry for you because now you’re trying to make it seem like you’re the victim,” Michelle tells Kristen. “You know what you are doing? You made me a victim.”
Michelle once again denies the speculation, telling the cameras, “I feel like an asshole that I have to say I am not a racist. And it’s because a crazy person didn’t want to feel attacked anymore so she decided to attack me.”
In response, Kristen issues another apology to Michelle after previously claiming that Janet Caperna told Jasmine Goode that Michelle was racist and a Republican.
“I couldn’t be more sorry,” Kristen adds in the video. “You know me better than that. I have done nothing but protect you.”
Jax ultimately steps in to try to mediate the dispute.
“We are all attacking one person here. This is not cool to do. Yes, maybe she did something wrong,” he says before elaborating in a confessional. “I think there is an element of truth in what they are all saying. But Janet and I are very similar. She likes to spew some s—t and then she will sit back and watch them tear it down. I think Janet is a silent killer.”
As some cast members start to trickle out, Jax encourages Kristen to discuss the drama with Zach Wickham. (Zach admitted in a previous episode that he shared some information with Kristen but claimed she misinterpreted the details before addressing them on screen.)
“First of all, you are not going to win this battle. Just get to the bottom of it with Zach. Call him out. If he’s lying, he’s lying. Call him out,” Jax tells Kristen. “Go handle it. Say what you have to say. Get your mind together.”
Jax jokes about the ongoing issues within the friend group with Jesse, saying, “This is exhausting. I just want to have a nice dinner and do some shots and bitch about my wife [Brittany Cartwright]. That’s it. That is all I want to do.”
The Valley follows Jax, Kristen and Brittany as they make their reality TV return following Vanderpump Rules. (Jax and Kristen were OG cast members since VPR premiered in 2013 while Brittany joined on season 4.)
After exiting Vanderpump Rules in 2020, Jax and Brittany focused on raising their now-3-year-old son, Cruz, before returning to Bravo. Kristen, for her part, recently teased what viewers could expect from her in the first season of The Valley.
“I will say I’m not perfect and I’m human and there are a few crazy Kristen moments,” she exclusively told Us Weekly in March. “She came with me and I tried to send her home and she just wanted to hang.”
The Valley airs on Bravo Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET and will be available to stream on Peacock the next day.
