Jax Taylor wants people to know that while Vanderpump Rules may have been created as a Real Housewives of Beverly Hills spinoff for former cast member Lisa Vanderpump, it was he and his castmates who kept the show on air.
During a podcast appearance earlier this week, Jax took credit for the show’s success before taking aim at the series’ editing and opening up about his and Brittany Cartwright‘s potential return to television and revealing his biggest parenting fear ahead of his son’s birth later this month.
“I appreciate [Lisa] for giving us the opportunity but we kept the show going. [Let’s] make that very clear,” Jax told hosts Joe Buck and Oliver Hudson on the April 8 episode of their Daddy Issues podcast.
Although Jax acknowledged that he was paid “a lot of money” during his eight-season run on Pump Rules, he also complained about how he was portrayed, saying that producers “make you how they want to make you.”
“What frustrates me is people will be like, ‘You’re crazy. You’re off-hinged.’ You’ve got to understand… They’re only showing when I’m at my peak. They never show how I got there or how I resolve the situation and it just wasn’t fair to me,” he explained.
“I kind of got to keep a little quiet. The show was good to me. I feel like they did me a little dirty towards the end but that’s part of the business,” he continued. I was paid a lot of money to be [the] douchebag.”
Following his and Brittany’s December 2020 exit from Pump Rules, Jax said the two of them are looking forward to embarking on a fun, new project as he continues to “be a fan” of the drama-fueled Bravo series.
“That lifestyle, when you hit a certain age, I can’t do it anymore. We’re not walking away from TV. We’re just going to move on to something more family-oriented,” he teased. “My wife’s about to give birth here in about two weeks. I’m reaching out to different networks. I’m a big HGTV guy. I love fixing things up. There’s some things going on that we’re talking about.”
After suggesting the name “From Shots to Tots” for his possibly impending new show, Jax confirmed he and Brittany were about to meet with a network but failed to reveal which one it was.
“I actually have a meeting with a network, my wife and I do. We’re lucky enough that people are reaching out to us. We have a little bit of a cushion and we have the option,” he shared.
While Jax was paid a lot during his time on Bravo, he said that’s all he’ll miss about his inauthentic role on the series.
“They could offer me a lot more and I’d be like, ‘Listen, I can’t do this. I can’t be a father.’ I haven’t realistically worked at SUR in like six years. I’m not lying to people anymore. It got too confusing,” he admitted.
As for his biggest parenting fear, Jax didn’t hesitate to name social media.
“The social aspect and the bullying, that, to me, I see people taking their lives. It’s a real thing. It’s brutal. I’m scared of it. I don’t know how I’m going to protect him from all these people,” Jax explained. “That’s a huge reason why I’m so happy not to be part of Vanderpump Rules anymore. I want to set that aside and do something that I’m happy about, that I’m proud of, that I can make my son proud of me.”
