Teresa Giudice Signed a Prenup Before She Married Joe — with One Huge Clause
We saw another side to the couple's marriage on The Real Housewives of New Jersey.
After watching Teresa and Joe Giudice over the past 10 seasons of The Real Housewives of New Jersey, you would think we would know everything about the couple. However, we just learned something major about their marriage on RHONJ.
In the January 1 episode of RHONJ, Joe called eldest daughter Gia Giudice from the ICE facility while she was out shopping for a prom dress with her mom (clip below). When Teresa got on the phone with her husband, Joe started complaining that Teresa keeps spending the money he earned. "I wasn't spending your stupid money," Teresa told her husband. "It's not like I was marrying a frickin' millionaire; I was marrying nothing, and you made me sign a prenup, OK?"
Teresa elaborated on the prenup during an interview in the episode. "A week before we were getting married, Joe asked me to sign a prenup, and I just felt like when you love someone you don't do that," she shared. "I wasn't gonna go through with it, but being Italian, you know, I have old school parents, that's an embarrassing thing to call off a wedding."
So Teresa decided she would sign the prenup and move forward with marrying Joe — on one condition. "I didn't even read it," she noted. "I just said, 'I want you to put one thing in there: If you ever cheat, the prenup goes void.'"
Allegations of cheating have plagued the RHONJ couple for years. Neither Teresa nor Joe believes the other has been faithful during their marriage, although they each deny cheating on their spouse.
During his phone call with Teresa, Joe told his wife, "You know what? You want me to say it now? Alright, you and this stupid prenup that you keep bringing up. I didn't want to get married, alright."
Teresa explained during The Real Housewives of New Jersey Season 10 After Show, which you can view, above, that Joe lashed out at her on the phone because of everything he was going through while in ICE custody. "He was going through a lot in there, which I guess it gets to you after a while," she said. "So he wasn't telling us all this, and he was going through a lot in there."
However, Teresa said there's no excuse for making those comments. "It was just like, I can't believe he said that in front of Gia," Teresa said during the RHONJ After Show. "Yeah, it's just mean."
Teresa and Joe reportedly decided to separate after 20 years of marriage following their reunion in Italy in November, which we will see later on this season of RHONJ. “They discussed their future when Teresa and the girls went to Italy in early November and they agreed that each had to move on. They are doing so amicably and very slowly,” a source told PEOPLE in December. "Joe has been out on a few dates, Teresa has not. She has been too busy with the girls, with work obligations and taking care of her father. She is happy for Joe. They have been very friendly with one another and are very supportive of each other’s happiness. They still love one another, but as Teresa told Andy Cohen on the WWHL special, they are separated by the Atlantic Ocean. Neither is interested in a long distance relationship."
However, the source noted that “there are no plans for divorce" and that Teresa and Joe "are focused" on their four daughters, Gia, 18, Gabriella, 15, Milania, 13, and Audriana, 10.
Teresa and Joe's children recently visited their dad in Italy for Christmas. Teresa stayed home in New Jersey to celebrate the holiday with the Gorgas.
We'll see the aftermath of Teresa and Joe's phone call in an all-new episode of RHONJ Wednesday, January 8 at 8/7c. Watch a preview below, and catch up on this season through the Bravo app.
