Jill Zarin Turns Down Appearance On Bethenny
October 2, 2013 by Lindsay Cronin
Jill Zarin and Bethenny Frankel really hit it off on The Real Housewives of New York. As part of the original cast of the show, Jill and Bethenny seemed to have a lot in common — at least when it came to reality TV and business. However, their personal lives were much different at the time. Jill was a mother and a wife and Bethenny was single, dating and trying to find someone to settle down with. Still, their friendship appeared strong and many thought it would last for years to come. Unfortunately, it did not.
Towards the end of filming on the show’s third season, Jill and Bethenny’s relationship became strained. According to Jill, it was because of a comment that Bethenny made to her about getting a hobby after she seemed to be too involved in the Skinnygirl mogul’s life. According to Bethenny, their feud was started by Jill who, after hearing that Bethenny was in talks for her own spinoff, attempted to convince the other ladies of The Real Housewives of New York to stop filming with her.
Now, years later, the two still aren’t speaking, and after Bethenny seemingly offered an olive branch to both Jill and their former co-star Alex McCord, neither lady was interested.
According to a Radar Online source, Bethenny’s booking agent for her talk show reached out to both women to “explore the possibility of Jill and Alex appearing as part of a reunion from the Real Housewives of New York City Season 1 or 2.”
“Bethenny is feeling pressure from network executives because ratings from her talk show have been less than stellar,” the source explains. ”She didn’t want to invite Jill and Alex to come on, but she really needs a ratings boost, and thought having them come on would generate a ton of publicity.”
Although the reunion would certainly have been interesting to watch, it isn’t going to happen. “Both ladies turned down the invitation to appear on the talk show,” the source reveals. “Bethenny was stunned that they both said no, she really thought they would agree to come on the show. Bethenny’s bosses suggested she call Jill and Alex personally, but she absolutely refused.”