Gizelle Bryant Breaks Her Silence After Leah McSweeney Put Her On Blast In Bombshell Bravo Investigation: “I Don’t Need A Producer To Tell Me To Do Anything” (Exclusive)

Gizelle Bryant is breaking her silence on the bombshell Vanity Fair investigation into Bravo and its shows. According to the Real Housewives of Potomac star — who was mentioned in the report by name by Leah McSweeney — she does not need a producer to tell her what to do, despite what the Real Housewives of New York City star might have speculated.

While McSweeney was vocally sober at the time she filmed Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip Season 3 alongside Bryant, her decision not to drink was often mentioned by her fellow castmates.

 “Let’s get Leah drunk!” Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star Heather Gay suggested at one point, while Bryant questioned, “Like if you drank this week, would that be a big deal?” to which McSweeney replied, “It would ruin my life,” per Vanity Fair.

At the time, McSweeney sent a text to co-showrunner Darren Ward, asking if producers told Bryant to bring up her sobriety on camera.

“Did you guys push her to talk about this stuff with me? It’s so odd,” she wrote in the text shared with Vanity Fair, while Ward wrote back, “NO. We did not.” When McSweeney texted, “I don’t need people trying to undermine my sobriety,” the showrunner replied, “Get out of your head.”

While speaking with Decider earlier today, Bryant explained why she decided to question McSweeney, who can be remembered by Bravoholics for drunkenly streaking and throwing tiki torches on an episode of RHONY.

“We go on these girls trips [and] we don’t know the ladies. I was getting to know Leah. I didn’t know her sobriety story,” Bryant tells us.

“What I did know was that I saw her on The Real Housewives of New York drunk. And then I heard that she was sober. So I didn’t know whether, like, you’re sober for a week, you’re sober for a month,” she says. “I didn’t know what the story was so I was asking so that I wouldn’t offer her a drink — so I could be respectful of her sobriety.”

The reality star further shut down McSweeney’s speculation that Ward had anything to do with their on-camera conversation.

“I did see that supposedly they were asking if Darren Ward asked me to ask her that and that is an absolute no,” Bryant confirms. “To know Gizelle, you would know, I ask questions all by myself. [I] don’t need a producer to tell me to do anything. I really wanted to know [about her sobriety] because I really wanted to be respectful.”

If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, call the SAMHSA National Helpline at 1-800-662-4357.