Former Real Housewives of New York City star Aviva Drescher is weighing in on Jill Zarin’s controversial Super Bowl rant, and while she didn’t defend the comments, she made it clear she doesn’t believe Jill is racist.
Speaking with TMZ, Aviva explained that her reaction was rooted in years of knowing Jill personally.
“I would never think about doing a show with someone who I thought was racist.”
Aviva said she has known Jill since 2011 and insisted the remarks didn’t align with the person she knows.
“I’ve known Jill since 2011, when I joined Housewives. Even though we didn’t work together, we became friendly. I’ve never thought of Jill as racist. That was the thing that really stung the most awful about her tirade.”
Still, Aviva didn’t sugarcoat her opinion of the now-deleted video, where Jill criticized Bad Bunny’s Super Bowl halftime performance and complained that there were “no white people” in the show.
“I think it was a completely stupid comment.”
Aviva acknowledged how the remarks landed publicly.
“I don’t think it came from a hateful place. I just don’t. I think it was completely stupid. It came off as completely racist, but I don’t think she’s racist.”
Why Jill Lost Her New Show
The backlash from Jill’s video quickly escalated. After her comments spread online, producers of E!’s upcoming RHONY-style reunion series The Golden Life cut ties with her entirely.
Blink49 Studios, the company behind the show, released a statement saying they would not move forward with Jill’s involvement “in light of recent public comments”, adding that the decision was about maintaining the network’s standards and values.
Jill later admitted she deleted the video immediately and said she “made a mistake,” but the damage had already been done. The firing came just days after the show had been announced, a comeback that ended almost as soon as it started.
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