Katie Ginella may be the new girl on The Real Housewives of Orange County, but she’s already making a bold statement: she’s not going anywhere.
After all of her castmates turned on her during the explosive recent episodes following a failed polygraph test, many assumed Katie might be on her way out. But not only is she staying strong in the face of conflict, she’s also looking ahead to what could be a dramatic reunion… and maybe even a second chance.
“I think that I would love for people to actually get to know me,” Katie told E! News’ Will Marfuggi in an exclusive sit-down. “For me to have that moment where I get to have real conversations with these women and possibly build real friendships and not these weird surface ones.”
Accused of spreading rumors about Tamra Judge and Gretchen Rossi to a blogger, accusations she’s repeatedly denied—Katie is holding out hope that the upcoming Season 19 reunion could serve as a reset.
“I think maybe there’s a possibility of a fresh start after the reunion,” she noted. “That’s what everybody hopes, right? This show is about conflict resolution and I think I’m owed some apologies. I’ve given enough out.”
Still, she admits the thought of confronting the group is nerve-wracking.
“I’m part confident and part extremely nervous,” she shared, adding that she’s expecting some reconciliations—if the others are willing to meet her halfway. “I’m hoping that they can recognize that they’ve done things wrong, because I have literally apologized over and over and over and owned the things I needed to. And, if they expect that of me, I need to expect it in return.”
As the rest of Season 19 unfolds, fans won’t see Katie on the cast trip to Amsterdam—but it wasn’t her choice to sit that one out.
“I actually asked to go,” she revealed. “I was like, ‘Just tell me where they are staying and I’ll show up,’ because I wanted to hash some things out with the ladies regarding this lie detector duo that we had and I found some information online. But I didn’t go and maybe it was best.”
Even through the tension, there’s one friendship Katie still clearly misses.
“We were very close,” she said of co-star Jennifer Pedranti. “Even off camera, out of production, we talked every day, our kids hang out, we did double dates with our spouses.”
Whether her reunion hopes pan out or not, one thing’s certain: Katie Ginella is not backing down from the drama, or the opportunity to clear her name.
Catch all the chaos as The Real Housewives of Orange County airs Thursdays at 8 p.m. on Bravo.
