Roxanne 
Southern Charm’s Rodrigo Reyes is standing firmly behind Austen Kroll after what many viewers are calling an uncomfortable and insensitive podcast interview involving Nick Viall and his wife, Natalie Joy.
The controversy stems from Austen’s appearance on the Wednesday, January 7 episode of The Viall Files, where Natalie, 26, quickly steered the conversation toward the tragic death of Austen’s older sister, Kyle, who died during a family hike when they were children.
“Going into your childhood, I didn’t know this about your sister passing at 9,” Natalie said early in the interview. “You obviously don’t have to answer, but my question [is] how old were you when that happened?”
Austen, now 38, replied that he was 7 years old at the time.
While the Bravo star has previously spoken about his sister’s death on Southern Charm, fans were quick to note that the conversation appeared to escalate beyond what felt comfortable — especially as Natalie continued to press for more details.
After Instagram account Besties by Caitlin recapped the episode, Austen’s costar Rodrigo Reyes jumped into the comments to defend him, offering one of the strongest reactions yet.
“She’s a POS,” Rodrigo, 41, wrote in response to Natalie’s line of questioning.
Rodrigo’s comment immediately gained traction, with many fans applauding him for speaking up on Austen’s behalf. Several listeners echoed the sentiment that the interview crossed a line.
“Wow. Sure he’s talked about it on the show but on his own terms,” one Instagram user wrote. “Seems wild to bring it up in such a cavalier way with zero sensitivity.”
Others focused on Austen’s demeanor during the exchange.
“That was so hard to watch. Austin’s body language said it all,” another user commented.
Despite the backlash building online, the interview continued. Natalie later asked Austen, “How did your family keep y’all together?”
“ Katie,” Austen answered, referring to his younger sister.
“Katie came to our family and was the biggest blessing that the Kroll family could have ever gotten,” he said. “Our story is very interesting because it’s like, if my older sister, Kyle, were still here, then my younger sister, Katie, wouldn’t be here. It was literally a cause and effect, and so it is very interesting because we look back, of course, with the fondest [memories] … and [our] family cries together.”
Austen described the period following Kyle’s death as “truly like the dark ages” for his family.
“Then, my youngest sister came around and … was born and that quite literally was like our family rebirth,” he shared. “We moved into a new house and it was, like, life could begin again.”
The conversation took another turn when Natalie asked whether Austen was present when his sister fell.
“Were you there when she fell?” she asked, later following up with, “What was this cliff?”
Austen, who appeared visibly uneasy and was bouncing his leg, gave a brief response.
“See, to talk about the town, it just got wiped off the map by a hurricane and there was no love lost with my family on that one,” he said. “I won’t even say the name of the town … but there was no love lost with it and, yeah, I don’t know.”
As the clip circulated, Rodrigo wasn’t the only Bravo figure paying attention. Kristen Doute appeared to show support by “liking” the post highlighting the exchange.
Neither Nick Viall nor Natalie Joy — who welcomed daughter River in 2024 — have publicly addressed the backlash or Rodrigo’s comments.
