Shep Rose of 'Southern Charm'Bravo
Shep Rose has quite a journey ahead of him on the new season of Southern Charm and during Bravo Fan Fest in Miami, he talked to Deadline about the steps he’s taken to sober up.
During the Season 9 reunion, Rose revealed his drinking had gotten out of control and was blacked out during BravoCon 2023. Since then, Rose has made inroads in making healthier lifestyle choices.
“I went and did ayahuasca in Costa Rica just to try to figure some things out and I thought it really helped me. [I began] fine tuning myself and being introspective and realizing my faults and my blind spots,” he told us. “[It] doesn’t mean I’m not going to trip and fall … but it’s very much a function of me just getting older [and] my body reacting differently to certain past behaviors.”
Southern Charm premieres on Thursday, December 5 on Bravo and on the premiere episodes, Rose opens up about longtime friends Craig Conover and Austen Kroll not being supportive through his journey.
“I don’t want to step on them too hard, but I asked them to sit down and talk to me because I felt like I needed a shoulder to lean on [and] pour it all out. They said, ‘We’re too busy,’ which sucks, right?” he said. “[It was] sort of tough love, and if that’s what it is, then that’s okay, but I would have handled it differently. Right now, we’re in a really good spot, and sometimes in friendships, you have to clean out the basement and I guess that’s what that was.”
Conover has a successful business and seemingly distanced himself from Rose so as not to be associated with his lifestyle.
“Craig’s a complicated guy,” Rose said. “He’s in this business-minded headspace and is very focused on that. I tell him this season, when you’re doing well, [it’s] even more important to help others because [it’s a] “rising tide lifts all boats” kind of situation.”
We asked Rose about Jarrett “JT” Thomas announced he was exiting Southern Charm amid post-production of Season 10, which is a development that doesn’t seem to worry the OG star.
“That’s his decision. I don’t know how to react, because all I know is that we’ve been doing the show for 10 seasons, and we’re gonna be just fine. Maybe if either me or Craig leaves, it’ll cause a bigger stir. I’m happy at the moment [being on the show],” he said.
