Photo:Frazer Harrison/Getty
Frazer Harrison/Getty
TheVanderpump Rulesstar was caught in atorrent of dramathis spring when his friend and business partnerTom Sandovalwas revealed to be carrying on amonths-long secret affairwith costarRaquel Levissbehind the back of Sandoval’s then-girlfriendAriana Madix(who, herself, is the friend and business partner of Schwartz’sex-wifeKatie Maloney).
But Schwartz, who just finished a run onStars on Mars, is ready to step back in front of cameras for a new season ofVPR.
“Maybe I’m still kind of basking in the afterglow of that whole experience,” he says of the Fox reality show. “I feel more optimistic. I feel myself again, and I just feel better equipped to handle whatever life throws at me.”
Brook Rushton/FOX
“Suffice it to say, I’ll probably be yearning for the camaraderie I had on Mars,” he says of theStars on Mars, which featured celebritiesTallulah Willis,Marshawn Lynch,Porsha Williams Guobadia,Ariel Winter,Natasha LeggeroandAdam Rippon.
Heading into season 11 ofVanderpump Rules, Schwartz predicts, “The team spirit might not be like it was on the Red Planet. I don’t know what it’s going to look like. I will say I’m excited and grateful that we have a new season. … I don’t know what to expect, honestly, but I know it’s going to be a good season. I’ll say that.”
Nicole Weingart/Bravo
And while Sandoval, 40, and Leviss, 28, took the brunt oftheVPRcast’s angerduring a"very heavy" reunion, theTomTom barco-owner acknowledges he is “clearly a flawed dude” who is “not proud of a lot of the things I’ve said and done” over the years.
But Schwartz tells PEOPLE, “I feel more me” after taking a step away from his life in Los Angeles — even if only for a few weeks.
He pauses to admit, “That’s corny.”
Telling PEOPLE he has “a fresh perspective,” Schwartz continues, “I guess the word is, I feel like I recalibrated. I feel like I just lost my way. I lost my way a little bit. I really did, lost my way and now I’m found.” He does make clear, though, “It’s not like I have it all together. I’m a constant work in progress, let’s be honest.”
Still, Schwartz says, “I feel more optimistic heading into this next year and excited. I’m excited. I feel giddy again, a little lighter on my feet. I guess [I want] just to be a little more balanced moving forward.”
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Vanderpump Rulescan be streamed in full on Peacock, andStars on Marsairs Mondays at 8 p.m. ET on Fox.
source: people.com
