Michelle Lally Hints at Upcoming Divorce with Jesse on The Valley, Admits He's "Not the One"
While describing how they met, Michelle Saniei Lally revealed she knew Jesse wasn't the right fit from the get-go.
Rocky times are coming to light on The Valley, leaving breadcrumbs that will eventually lead to the split of Jesse Lally and Michelle Saniei Lally.
Viewers saw their relationship troubles on Season 1, Episode 4 of The Valley, as the now-estranged couple described the marriage they’ve worked hard on improving. (The parents of 3-year-old Isabella Bunny Lally announced their split in March 2024, ahead of The Valley premiere.) Now, viewers are hearing their origin story for the first time.
Prompted by Janet Caperna at the N.M.D.P. Be The Match Gala, Michelle and Jesse went into detail about how they first met.
How did Michelle and Jesse Lally from The Valley meet?
“We had an office meeting, and I’m like, ‘Why don’t we meet for coffee?’” Jesse told the others.
“We were supposed to just have a date that night, and I said, ‘OK, let’s just meet so I know you’re not crazy,’” Michelle explained. “He talked so much and didn’t ask me one word. Well, I said, ‘OK, I’m not going to take him seriously, I could just have fun with him.’”
Michelle said she texted him around midnight, demanding that he come over right away, and then that’s when things got hot and heavy.
“I walked in and immediately took off her jean shorts, and we have been together ever since,” Jesse told the group.
Later, however, Michelle gave producers “the real story.”
“We had coffee. I knew he was not the one, but I was very attracted to him,” Michelle confessed. “I canceled our first date, ended up going out, partying with my girlfriends, getting super drunk, and I wanted a booty call.”
That’s when she decided to call Jesse.
“Now I’m in the world’s longest booty call,” Michelle concluded.
Will Jesse and Michelle Lally break up?
Earlier in the episode, Jesse, Jax Taylor, and Danny Booko took their little ones for a trip to the County Fair. There, Jesse admitted things weren’t going so well for the couple, who married nearly six years earlier.
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Jax — who recently split from his wife, Brittany Cartwright — acknowledged a person’s sex life and marriage could “take a backseat” after having children.
“Michelle used to show up at my house, wearing, like, a trench coat, and I used to tie her up and pour hot wax on her,” Jesse said. “Now, I can’t even get a candle lit in my own house without [her saying], ‘That doesn’t smell right.’”
The Lallys have tried therapy, much of which is featured on The Valley, with Jesse previously saying in one session their marriage consisted of “constant conflict all the time.” During the County Fair visit in the recent episode, Jax asked his long-time friend if marriage counseling had helped.
Jesse said, “Right now, it’s bad.”
Jesse and Michelle, despite their efforts, confirmed their breakup to Us Weekly during the series premiere party. In separate red-carpet interviews at the Los Angeles event, both hinted that turbulence in their relationship would be a heavy theme in the series.
“There’s a major storyline about our life where I try to work on myself throughout the entire summer to be the best version of myself,” Jesse said. “And if the best version of myself aligned with the best version of herself, then our marriage would make it. People evolve. If your marriage and relationship doesn’t evolve with it, it will never work, no matter how bad you want it.”
Michelle said it took viewing themselves on The Valley to better see their issues.
“Taking a step back and looking at myself, I’m like, ‘Oh, wow. It’s obvious we have some marital issues,’” she told Us Weekly. Michelle added that the breakup was “very authentic” and that they didn’t hide their true selves from the cameras.
Watch all-new episodes of The Valley, airing Tuesdays at 9/8c on Bravo and streaming the next day on Peacock.
