Vanderpump Rules Moments That Made Fans Gasp

If you've ever seen even just one episode of "Vanderpump Rules" then you know the Bravo series is filled with tons of drama and more than its fair share of jaw-dropping moments. Since its premiere in 2013 as a spin-off of "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills," the show has chronicled the lives of friends (or more accurately, frenemies) who have worked at SUR, the bar/restaurant owned by former "Housewife" Lisa Vanderpump. Season 1 introduced series regulars Stassi Schroeder, Jax Taylor, Katie Maloney, Tom Sandoval, Kristen Doute, Tom Schwartz, and Scheana Shay. They were eventually then joined by Ariana Madix, James Kennedy, Lala Kent, Brittany Cartwright, and Raquel Leviss in later seasons.

Although Schroeder, Doute, Taylor, and Cartwright were eventually let go by Bravo, the series has continued on without them even if most of the original cast has moved on from their jobs at SUR as well. In fact, the remaining crew filmed its 10th season in 2022, proving that they were nowhere near out of drama despite all the changes. Kent told People, "It's going to be absolutely insane. And without giving away too much, I feel like with everything that happened, and cast members who have exited, we finally have our footing again."

While "Vanderpump Rules" may still have an exciting future ahead, we can't forget the crazy moments from the past that made the show what it is today. So let's break down those wild moments over the years that literally made fans of the reality series gasp.

Jax Taylor was clearly a main source of drama during the first season of "Vanderpump Rules," which is why it's no surprise he ended Season 1 with another jaw-dropping moment. That's because, despite denying it for literally the entire season, Taylor finally admitted to his former girlfriend, Stassi Schroeder, that he had cheated on her during a trip to Vegas by getting another woman pregnant. When it came to that other woman, Taylor even revealed in the confessional, per Radar, "I sent her some money and never heard from her again."

In true "VPR" fashion, Taylor's confession was heavy on the dramatics, with him sitting Schroeder down at SUR after quitting his job there. While Schroeder couldn't have been shocked, she still didn't take it well, telling Taylor, "You spent the last two months lying to me, lying to my best friends, bashing them when they were just helping me ... when you were the piece of s*** the entire time." She was also upset with how it impacted her friendships, adding, "I lost my friends for months because they believed you."

According to Daily Mail, in a later special episode of "Vanderpump Rules Uncensored," Taylor revealed that he finally decided to own up to his cheating because he felt the fans of the show should know the truth about him and his issues with sex. He admitted, "If there would have been a hole in the wall I would probably try to have sex with it."

Tom Schwartz and Katie Maloney's relationship clearly had its fair share of drama, but "Vanderpump Rules" fans were still pretty surprised that Schwartz would pour a drink on his then-girlfriend's head. That did happen, though, when the cast went to Mexico for Stassi Schroeder's birthday during Season 2. According to People, Schwartz and Maloney had been fighting over him and Scheana Shay saying Maloney had a drinking problem. That then led to Schwartz and Maloney screaming at each other in the street with plenty of cursing. But the worst part seemed to be when he poured his beer on her head while saying, "F*** off, man."

In the show's confessional, Schwartz later revealed, "I sort of snapped." Maloney was visibly upset, explaining to her friends in another scene what he would have to do for her to forgive him. She even dished, "He better be on his knees like licking my toes." However, when looking back at the incident, Maloney told Bravo that she did eventually get her revenge, saying, "I punished him by withholding his back rubs and head rubs."

Schwartz has since apologized and often, revealing on "Watch What Happens Live," "I have thoroughly. I do on a weekly basis." But if you watched "VPR" over the years, then you know that this particular incident wasn't the last time that the former couple had drama. 

While the whole "Miami Girl" moment was super entertaining in itself, what happened after that was just as over-the-top, as Scheana Shay confronted Kristen Doute for bringing that woman to SUR when she was smoking on the patio. That unsurprisingly turned into a full-on screaming match between them, since Shay didn't like Doute getting involved with her friend Ariana Madix's relationship. All that chaos got the attention of the restaurant's manager, Diana ​​Dacheva, who told Doute she needed to stop yelling and leave. Doute apparently didn't take that well, responding, "Diana, f****** walk away now. Move your a**," before adding, "Suck a d***."

Fans were seemingly flabbergasted that Doute would speak to her boss that way, as was one of the restaurant's owners Lisa Vanderpump, who later called Doute out on it. Doute refused to apologize at the time, and instead blamed "Miami Girl." She claimed, "It wasn't my fault that that girl came in and that's what happened and that's why the drama started ... I'm not taking blame for this." Vanderpump didn't buy that, and fired Doute on the spot.

Although Doute later told E! that she was ready to leave SUR anyway, she revealed that she really did feel bad for what she said to Dacheva. "I apologized to her profusely, both as my friend and as my manager," she said, adding, "I knew I was completely out of line and reacted impulsively toward her that day."

It seems Scheana Shay's Season 3 wedding was full of drama for the "Vanderpump Rules" cast, particularly when Katie Maloney got very emotional after her then-boyfriend Tom Schwartz gifted her a "ring on a string." Viewers watched thinking a proposal was about to happen, but then saw the look of disappointment on Maloney's face when it turned out to be a ring necklace instead. She later wrote on Bravo's website why she was so upset, dishing, "In conversations past, Tom and I talked about the idea of wearing rings on a necklace. I scoffed at the idea, as I thought it defeats the purpose and sentiment of a ring."

Maloney made her disappointment clear to Schwartz by telling him that isn't what a woman pushing 30 wants. She then discussed it with her boss, Lisa Vanderpump, who worried that Maloney was settling since Schwartz wasn't giving her what she wanted. Maloney even wrote on her blog, "I felt like it was a pacifier without really having to make commitments ... I had been so patient and understanding with Tom, but did this all come with cost?"

Schwartz later defended the gift on the "Vanderpump Rules After Show," despite Jax Taylor and Tom Sandoval ribbing him for giving his girlfriend a fake engagement ring at someone else's wedding. Yet Schwartz dished, "I went in there ... with sincere intentions. I thought it was cute. I put a lot of thought into it ... it said 'Bubba' on it."

While it probably wasn't astonishing that Jax Taylor eventually got himself arrested, it was how it all went down that was pretty jarring, since it happened when the "Vanderpump Rules" cast took a trip to Hawaii. The episode didn't show the moment Taylor was taken into custody for stealing sunglasses from a store, but his then-girlfriend (now wife) Brittany Cartwright later broke the news to the others on camera. She explained (via Bustle), "He told me that it was for a felony charge and it was still under investigation."

If you can't understand why Taylor stole sunglasses, neither could the rest of the cast — at that point in his TV career, he presumably had enough money to pay for them. Taylor told Cartwright the next day it was because he was drunk. According to The Daily Mail, he even reiterated that to the judge when he went to court, saying, "I had too many drinks, too many mai tais." He added, "I made a mistake, took full responsibility and I understand this is going to follow me the rest of my life due to the fact that I'm on television."

Although the incident had to be embarrassing for Taylor, he revealed to The Daily Dish that some good came out of it, because it had humbled him. He admitted, "I kind of needed to be knocked down a little bit. The Hawaii thing was a perfect example — my ego was getting a little out of control." 

If you think Jax Taylor only cheated on Stassi Schroeder, think again. He also did it to his next serious girlfriend, who's now his wife, Brittany Cartwright. It seemed that Taylor had really changed for Cartwright, which is why it was dumbfounding when he admitted to cheating on her with Faith Stowers. Cartwright had asked him flat out during an episode of "Vanderpump Rules" if they'd had sex. Taylor then tried to justify it, telling her, "It was when we were going through bad times. It was about what was going on in our relationship." Cartwright was, of course, devastated, telling him, "I would never do that to you ... I hope it was worth it."

Taylor later revealed in the show's confessional what led him to actually tell Cartwright the truth. "This isn't my first time being caught cheating," he explained, seemingly referring to the incident with Schroeder. "In the past, I've gone through months and months of deny, deny, deny, and that didn't work for me." It was also something he apparently didn't think he'd have to deal with, considering that he said that he didn't think Stowers was going to rat him out.

Eventually, Taylor did show some remorse for his actions, telling Us Weekly, "I really really really regret what I did. It was just a huge mistake that we are actually working out right now." They presumably did work it out, because they went on to tie the knot two years later.

It can probably be said that no "Vanderpump Rules" fan expected James Kennedy and Lala Kent to get into an explosive argument over pasta, but that's sort of what happened during Season 6. It all started when Kent joked about eating the pasta Kennedy's then-girlfriend Raquel Leviss had ordered at one of his DJ gigs. That apparently set off Kennedy, since he then told Kent, "You've always been a b**** to Raquel." He even added another jab, saying, "Honey, you f*** the fat man because he pays for your rent," referring to her boyfriend at the time, Randall Emmett.

If that wasn't enough to make fans gulp, Kennedy then followed Kent outside after she stormed off. He then rattled off one of the show's most famous soliloquies, stating, "Why is it about the damn pasta? Get over the damn pasta! Read between the f***ing lines! It ain't about the pasta! It's not about the pasta! ... It's not about the pasta."

While Kennedy insisted in the confessional that the fight was caused by Kent not respecting his girlfriend, there were other interpretations. In fact, there was a rumor (via Watch What Happens Live) that pasta was a codeword for cocaine. But Kent explained on Jenny McCarthy's Sirius XM show, "It was legitimately pasta," adding, "I'm not a drug person, so I was actually very offended." Regardless, this was one of the many moments that left fans shook, and hopefully the future seasons of "VPR" will be just as entertaining.