‘RHONJ’: Luis Ruelas Reportedly Played a Role in Teresa Giudice’s Fallout With Dina Manzo

Fans of The Real Housewives of New Jersey have been waiting for clarity on what took place that would make Dina Manzo skip her longtime BFF Teresa Giudice’s wedding. Both women have claimed there is no bad blood, but according to sources, as well as Giudice’s brother and sister-in-law Joe and Melissa Gorga, she’s lying. It appears Giudice’s new husband, Luis Ruelas, may have played a role in Giudice and Manzo’s fallout.

Joe and Melissa Gorga blame Luis Ruelas for Teresa Giuidice’s fallout with Dina Manzo

On the April 4 episode of RHONJ, Giudice’s brother Joe dished on a conversation he had with Manzo’s husband, David Cantin. He said in a confessional: “Dina’s husband, David [Cantin], called me because I’m friendly with David.” Joe added that the two bickered over a business dispute, leading to a fallout between the longtime friends. 

“And it f—ked up another relationship in Teresa’s life,” Joe added. Joe has also blamed Ruelas for the current estrangement between himself and Giudice, which she denies. The two haven’t been on speaking terms since he and Melissa skipped Giudice and Ruelas’ wedding in August 2022.

In a later scene, Melissa echoed similar sentiments. After Dolores Catania and Jennifer Aydin told her that Giudice asked them to be bridesmaids in her and Ruelas’ wedding, she felt the timing was suspect. Manzo was originally a bridesmaid before pulling out. Giudice didn’t want Melissa as a bridesmaid in her wedding.

“Dolores was not even invited to the engagement party. Why? Because Dina was,” Melissa said in her confessional. According to Catania and Aydin, Giudice’s revelation about them becoming a bridesmaid happened while she was meditating. But Giudice isn’t buying it. “I hear Louie and Dina’s man have an argument over business, these two are no longer friends. All of a sudden, it’s like, ‘Dolores, I was meditating ….’” Melissa added. 

Teresa Giudice has denied there are any issues between her and Dina Manzo

Sources on Giudice’s side have insisted there is no bad blood between the two. But cryptic social media posts from Manzo make fans believe otherwise. Amid the wedding fiasco, Manzo posted several messages to her Instagram Stories about knowing when to walk away from relationships. Fans assumed it she was referencing her fallout with Giudice. 

During an Instagram Stories Q&A, a fan asked Manzo if she and Giudice were “friends again.” Manzo responded, “We were never not friends,” she clarified. “Sometimes friendships go [through phases], but in the end, true friendships will always find their way back when the time is right.”

Giudice also set the record straight. In an October 2022 interview on the Two Ts in a Pod podcast hosted by RHOC’s Tamra Judge and RHOBH’s Teddi Mellencamp Arroyave, Giudice said there’s no issue. She shared similar sentiments on her Namaste B$tches podcast in August 2022. “Listen. Love Dina. Wish her well. I know she wishes me well. And just gonna leave it at that,” Giudice said.

What other sources have said about Teresa Giudice and Dina Manzo’s fallout

According to Housewives insider and Behind the Velvet Rope podcast host David Quinn, the longtime best friends reportedly had a falling out just weeks before Giudice’s wedding. When speaking to former RHONJ producer Carlos King on his Reality With the King podcast, Quinn explained that a trusted source gave him the tea. He explained:

I have heard from sources that I trust that there was a pretty intense falling out between her and Teresa. Now, that does not seem to be reflected in any source reporting that I’ve seen from other outlets. I’ve noticed that what I believe to be source reporting from Teresa’s side say that they’re great and that Dina just didn’t want to film. But Dina has filmed before, even after she was on the show. From my understanding, the cameras weren’t very invasive, and they really only filmed part of the wedding. I’m sure that Dina could have easily navigated this experience without being filmed.

King agreed. He says the decision on Manzo’s end to skip the wedding appeared abrupt and had to have been for a legitimate reason. “What I’ve seen up until Teresa’s wedding day was tons of pictures of double dates between Teresa, Luis, Dina, and her husband. I mean them traveling to Florida, I even think they went out the country together,” King said. He later added, “Dina and Teresa remained friends even at the height of Teresa’s career…Dina has always been there for her. So do I think it may be something bigger than just cameras being there? It’s likely.”