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Emily Simpson took aim at Heather Dubrow during an interview on Wednesday.
As she blasted her Real Housewives of Orange County castmate for tipping off production about the drama between Shannon Beador, 59, and her now-ex-boyfriend, John Janssen, and reacted to Heather, 54, comparing her to Sesame Street‘s Mr. Snuffleupagus, Emily, 47, offered an update on where they stand today and teased the “dramatic” season 17 reunion.
“I feel like things were resolved and everyone got to say their piece,” Emily revealed of the upcoming special during a September 27 interview with Entertainment Tonight. “I think there were dramatic moments [and] I think there were funny moments.”
Following the taping, Emily said that despite their drama on the season, she and Heather are in a good place today.
“Heather and I went to dinner after the reunion,” she revealed. “I do truly consider Heather a friend, and I hope she feels the same way about me.”
According to Emily, she believes much of the drama that she and Heather faced resulted from filming for long hours and being pushed to their wits’ ends.
“You’re tired and you’re traveling and you’re irritated with each other, and you say things and you call names, you’re able to realize later, when you take a step back, that you are really friends, you do care about each other,” she explained.
“I saw Heather after we filmed,” she continued. “She had a birthday party a couple of months later, I was the only one on the cast that went to her birthday party. So, I feel like I’ve shown up for her and shown her that I’m sorry about certain, isolated events where I was not at my best.”
Reflecting on the season, Emily admitted to having regrets regarding Heather and noted that her co-star is more sensitive than she realized, which led to “misfires” in their relationship.
“I think I read her wrong, ’cause to me, when I look at Heather Dubrow, I think she’s so strong and stoic, and she’s very poignant with her words and how she deals with people,” she shared. “So, to me, I just thought she could take it.”
Heather has been vocal in saying that she felt like the season’s “whipping boy,” and Emily said that after watching the episodes play out, she agrees.
“It was a wolf-pack mentality and, at the time, I didn’t see it,” she explained. “I was frustrated with her, but I wish I wouldn’t have let that frustration get the best of me. I wish I would have been able to bring it back in.”
One particular point of contention for Emily was learning that Heather allegedly referred to her and other cast members as “losers.”
“I’ve worked so hard on my own to pull myself out of situations, where I’ve become successful, and so that word is very — I hate to say ‘trigger’ because I hate that word, but it’s very triggering for me, because I think it brings up past emotions,” she admitted.
Although Heather has denied saying that any of her castmates are “losers,” Emily didn’t have much trust in her at the time the drama was playing out.
“I also don’t believe Tamra to be a liar … I have never known Tamra to just make up something and throw it out there,” she added.
As for Heather’s past claim that she “hates” the women of RHOC, Emily understands where she was coming from.
“I think it was valid at that point,” Emily noted. “If I was sitting at a table and everyone was attacking me, I would call [my husband, Shane Simpson] and say, I hated everyone, too.”
In addition to the speculation regarding Heather’s potential “loser” comment, she also compared Emily to Snuffleupagus.
“I have looked at lots of memes with me next to a Snuffleupagus and I am like, I don’t know, I like the eyelashes,” she mused. “I like the big eyes, the hair. I am like, I am just going to go with it. I am going to take it as a compliment.”
Moving on to Shannon’s relationship with John, Emily said that while it didn’t appear that Heather was saying much on the show, she was active behind the scenes.
“She doesn’t do it on camera,” Emily explained. “Heather is very smart. She is very smart. I do think that she can be calculated in some ways about what she presents on camera, and what is off camera.”
“I honestly would’ve never brought it up on camera — I do have certain boundaries — and when Shannon was telling me those things, I had conversations with Heather,” she continued. “We all knew she was doing it, it ended up being brought up on camera because Heather had told production, ‘You need to start following the real story with Shannon and John.’”
Looking ahead to season 18, Emily said she “would love” for the cast to stay the same.
“I think the season was very well received,” she reasoned. “You couldn’t have six more different women, but that’s what makes it interesting, because if we were all the same and we all got along and we all held hands and sang ‘Kumbaya,’ like, no one would want to watch.”
Emily also added of Heather, who recently confirmed she’ll return if asked, “I’m sure she will [be back] because she’s Heather. She likes to be on TV.”
The Real Housewives of Orange County season 17 reunion begins airing next Wednesday, October 4, at 8/7c on Bravo.