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The Daily Dish Producer Secrets

RHOP Producer on "The Wildest Thing" He's Seen on the Show: "I'm Still Traumatized"

James Brangert also shares who's "the shadiest" on RHOP and weighs in on Gizelle Bryant and Karen Huger's drama.

By Laura Rosenfeld
Rhop Producer Bravos Chat Room

In the August 22 episode of The Real Housewives of Potomac, Ashley Darby shared that she had decided to encapsulate her placenta, following the recent birth of her second child, Dylan. Not only did we get to hear that revelation, but we also saw footage of the process.

How to Watch

Watch The Real Housewives of Potomac on Bravo on Sunday, October 6 at 8/7c and next day on  Peacock. Catch up on the Bravo app

As uncomfortable as it may have been to watch for some viewers at home, it sounds like it was even worse for the RHOP producer in the field, who witnessed the encapsulation firsthand. "(gags) Oh my God," the producer's subtitles appeared on the screen. "Don't mind me. Just pretend I'm not here."

Well, that producer happened to be James Brangert, who lived to tell the tale during his appearance on Bravo's Chat Room on August 22. While speaking with co-hosts Gizelle Bryant and Porsha Williams, as well as special guest Karen Huger, James revealed that this moment was "the wildest thing" he's ever had to be a part of while working on RHOP. "I'm still traumatized," he recalled of the experience. "All I could think was, 'We are cooking Ashley. We're cooking Ashley.' And it smelled like beef jerky."

Karen similarly thought it was pretty gag-worthy on Bravo's Chat Room, but Porsha revealed that she also ingested her placenta via pills following the birth of daughter Pilar Jhena McKinley.

Moving on to perhaps a more palatable topic, Karen asked James, "Who do you think is the shadiest on Potomac?" "Well, I say this with love," James replied. "But everyone knows: Gizelle."

"I will take that," Gizelle said in response. "But James, some of the other ladies have very shady moments, which outweigh my shade."

However, Porsha, who knows a thing or two about shade from The Real Housewives of Atlanta, agreed with James' assessment that Gizelle is the shadiest of them all on RHOP. "But Gizelle, it takes them to have shady moments in the group that even amount to you," Porsha explained. "Nine times out of 10, [Karen's] shade is directed at just you, and she'll give Robyn [Dixon] a sprinkle of shade that's epic sometimes. But, yeah, it's you, Gizelle. It's you."

Gizelle ultimately accepted her shady title, but she wasn't out of the hot seat yet. Porsha went on to ask James what he thinks the future holds for Gizelle and Karen since the onetime friends have famously been at odds on RHOP over the years, especially in the current season. "Here's the thing. I think that they love to spar with each other. I think that they've known each other for a long time," James shared. "I do think that there's hope for them in the future. I think that there's a lot of love there behind all of it. Whether it's short-lived or not, we'll find out, but I do think there is some love there."

"Speaking as a fan of the show and a superfan of both of you ladies," Porsha shared that she was similarly optimistic about the possibility of Gizelle and Karen one day moving forward in a more positive direction. "There is something that is between you two that you are both not letting go of. You did enjoy it when you guys were friends. You enjoy fighting, but you also enjoy when you were friends," Porsha said. "If y'all could just sit in a room, just the two of you guys, and just have a conversation, both of y'all say 'sorry, sorry,' it could work."

Want more RHOP? New episodes air every Sunday at 8/7c.

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