For the most part, fans were pleasantly shocked when Sammi Giancola announced that she would be returning to Jersey Shore.
But quite a few commenters expressed concern, and for good reason.
After all, Sammi didn’t stay away from the show because of some petty contract dispute.
No, she kept her distance because returning to the cast would have meant working alongside her abusive ex, Ronnie Magro.
Ronnie and Sam’s blowout fights were documented extensively during Shore‘s original run.
It could be argued that they both behaved poorly, but Sammi appears to have left all that toxicity behind her, whereas Ronnie’s short temper is still creating a lot of problems.
Magro has been arrested multiple times in recent years, and at least two exes have accused him of domestic violence.
He took a long hiatus from the show last season, and it was widely assumed that Ronnie had been fired from Jersey Shore, thus clearing the way for Sammi’s return.
But according to a new report from TMZ, both exes are currently filming for the new season.
In keeping with the show’s family vacation theme, the entire cast is shooting in Orlando at the moment.
And when we say the entire cast, we’re including Ronnie and Sammi, both of whom were spotted at the Margaritaville Resort in Orlando on Friday.
The exes were not seen together, so it’s possible that they’ll only film separately.
We hope for Sammi’s sake that she’ll be able to participate in the new season while also keeping her distance from Ronnie.
Fortunately, TMZ reports that Giancola’s boyfriend joined her in Orlando, so she’s not without reinforcements.
Of course, the situation highlights the larger issue of MTV’s unwillingness to fire Magro despite numerous allegations of violence against women.
Ronnie is sober now, and it seems that producers are hoping that his violent past was the result of his substance abuse issues.
That might be the case, but there aren’t many jobs that allow employees to stick around after they’ve been accused of assault by multiple people.
And MTV’s failure to act is especially shameful, as one of Ronnie’s victims will now be forced to endure the trauma of working with him.
Sure, Sammi didn’t have to return to Shore, but she shouldn’t be forced to pass up millions simply because her abusive ex is standing in the way.
Instead, her bosses should remove said ex from the situation, but it’s becoming increasingly clear that that’s never gonna happen.
Hopefully, precautions are being taken to ensure Sammi’s safety.
