Ahead of the “Real Housewives of Rhode Island” season one finale Sunday at 9 p.m., Jo-Ellen Tiberi says she’s excited for season two filming this summer—while pointing to what was funny, and what was hard, about bringing her life and relationships to Bravo. Sh
The tension was there from the start. but by the time “The Real Housewives of Rhode Island” found its groove. the jokes had already started traveling faster than the drama. Jo-Ellen Tiberi is living in that reality right now—on the eve of the season one finale. Sunday at 9 p.m. when the women take a ferry to Block Island.
In a recent Zoom from her Cranston home, Tiberi looked back on a season that New Englanders first reacted to with confusion—then, around Episode 4, with laughter. She talked about how the show landed online, how “quotes became memes,” and how it all turned into a kind of cultural momentum.
“And the real surprise,” Tiberi said, “came around Episode 4.”
Bravo had already renewed the ratings-magnet season for season 2, and Tiberi described the turn from uncertainty to excitement. “Initially we were like, ‘Is this show even gonna happen?’ Then it happened,” she said. “We assumed we were going to get a season two, but when we heard it [officially], we were like, ‘Yay!. That’s incredible.’” She said the show is “the perfect mix of like attitude. funny. beauty— I’m just so proud of the show and the girls.”.
That pride is real, but it’s paired with the messiness of filming real relationships. Tiberi said the biggest high was being around Alicia Carmody and hearing what she called her quotable lines—while the hardest part was conflict itself. “The lows, obviously no one likes to fight,” she said. “This is real life and it’s hard to show sometimes.”.
She singled out the emotional strain of her relationship with her mother, especially a scene in the season that centered on confronting her. “Especially my mother and me,” she said. “That the scene when you confronted your mother moved me.”
Tiberi said she believes the reaction wasn’t unique. “I can’t believe how many other people have been in a similar situation— whether it’s being sent away, or dealing with a parent who didn’t show them love, or favored one child. I feel like I’m not alone.”
Asked whether her mother was okay filming that material, Tiberi said her mother understood what would be discussed. “When I told her, ‘Hey, do you want to go on a scene?. We’re going to talk about my childhood and upbringing.’ She knew what we were going to discuss,” Tiberi said. She added that it was still difficult for her mother to watch it back.
The season also includes a moment Tiberi said left her shaken when a fight escalated during Episode 10—her confrontation with Liz on the drive to Boston and later inside Capo. “I couldn’t believe episode 10– your fight with Liz on the drive to Boston– and inside Capo. Was it scary?” the interviewer asked.
Tiberi said she wasn’t scared in the car, but she was trying to cool things down. “I wasn’t scared in the car. I was just trying to calm the situation. ” she said. calling herself the “peacemaker” in a way that wasn’t comfortable. “The peacemaker– that’s not exactly my favorite role. It was uncomfortable. But it escalated when we got into Capo, and was scary at that moment.”.
She said she started crying, and described physical moments that followed. “The hair pulling, the chair-kicking, the chair-pushing— there were a few moments,” she said. When she later brought it up to Liz, she said Liz denied it. “I brought them up to Liz afterwards, and felt gaslighted when she said, ‘That never happened.’”.
Tiberi said she and Liz have moved past the friendship rupture, but that it remained hard to rewatch.
Part of that rewatching, she said, includes reading online comments—something she’s working on changing. “I do,” she said of reading comments online. Then she added, “But I’m doing better— I’m 75 percent not reading the comments. I don’t know why people think it’s OK to write mean things on the internet.” Even so. she said the fan base is largely supportive: “I wish people would realize we’re human beings. But 95 percent of the fans are amazing.”.
When she talked about her favorite moment filming, she returned to a quieter, more personal scene: speaking with Alicia on the Cliff Walk in Newport. “That was really touching,” she said, adding, “I think it blossomed our friendship even more.”
For all the drama. Tiberi said she also loves how Rhode Island shows up in the series. down to the state’s distinct rhythm—“hating to drive. or red pizza”—and even the kind of local trivia that turns into a punchline. She referenced “The Big Blue Bug. ” a trivia question in Episode 9 that she said she knew the answer to. even though it wasn’t shown. “I was like, ‘Nibbles Woodaway!’” she said, laughing, adding, “I mean, who doesn’t know that?”.
Looking ahead, Tiberi said she’s excited for season two filming this summer, and she hopes for more Boston scenes. She praised Boston’s welcome for the Rhode Island Housewives, saying it’s been more welcoming than anywhere else. “Boston has been so welcoming to the Rhode Island Housewives, I can’t even tell you,” she said. “They’ve been more welcoming than anyone else, put it that way. So thank you.”.
She also thanked Massachusetts more broadly, after saying she and the cast attended events there, including being at Fenway and at TD Garden for a Celtics game. She described the area as a place where there are “always Housewives events here,” including “a lot of meet-and-greets.”
Tiberi said she needs one more thing before her season two dreams are complete: meeting Mark Wahlberg and Ben Affleck. “Now I just need to meet Mark Wahlberg and Ben Affleck,” she said. Then. with a wink at the broader pop-culture world around her. she offered a Dunkin’ pitch: “Do you guys want me to do a Dunkin’ commercial?. I’ll do a Dunkin’ commercial.”.
No date, cast changes, or confirmations for season two have been announced yet. But if the finale Sunday at 9 p.m.—with ferry rides to Block Island—feels like a wrap. Tiberi’s tone suggests it’s more of a runway. She said last summer everything felt uncertain. but now she’s approaching the next season with more confidence. more familiarity. and a clearer sense of what she’s bringing to the cameras. “Last summer everything was like, ‘I don’t know what I’m doing.’ Now I feel more confident,” she said. “I think more places will be welcoming to film. I’m really excited for season two.”.
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