VANDERPUMP Villa's Eric Funderwhite has been banned from filming the reunion, The U.S. Sun has exclusively learned.
Eric, 37, is one of the 12 cast members in theHulureality show,Vanderpump Villa, who was hired byLisa Vanderpumpto work as the chateau manager at her French countryside estate.
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The first three episodes of the show dropped on April 1 and the streaming service has since been releasing new episodes weekly.
The cast got together this week, on Monday, April 15, to film their reunion in Los Angeles, California, according to an insider.
A source told The U.S. Sun, "Eric was disinvited from theVanderpump Villa reunion taping because of his TRO (temporary restraining order)."
"Producers were furious over theshocking news, so they banned him," the source added.
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"If there's a second season, he most likely won't be returning."
This comes after fans have demanded that he be "fired" after learning about the surprising news.
It appears everyone else on the cast, except for Eric was at the reunion, including Lisa, although it is not confirmed.
The cast also includes mixologists Andre Mitchell andTelly Hall, executive chefAnthony Bar, sous chef Caroline Byl, lead server Marciano Brunette, servers Priscila Ferrari and Hannah Fouch, events coordinators Gabriella Sanon and Stephen Alsvig, and housekeepers Grace Cottrell and Emily Kovacs.
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It can only be assumed that Eric's past was a hot topic that was brought up during the reunion since the cast did not seem to be aware of it while filming at Chateau Rosabelle.
The date of the Vanderpump Villa reunion has not been announced.
However, the series includes 10 episodes total with the last expected to drop on May 20.
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SHOCKING PAST
The U.S. Sun previously reported on the bombshell filing in Los Angeles that alleged Eric was abusive in his past relationship.
A request for a temporary restraining order was filed by his ex - whose identity The U.S. Sun has chosen to keep anonymous - on November 13, 2020.
A temporary restraining order was granted by a judge and in place until December 28, 2020, when it was dismissed.
Eric allegedly "physically assaulted" his ex and allegedly gave her black eyes, as seen in photos from court documents obtained by The U.S. Sun.
His ex claimed he became "even more aggressive," at one point during their relationship, and "continued to psychologically and verbally abuse" her, which she said was "detrimental to my mental health."
On her birthday in 2020, he "spit" in her face, she alleged.
The U.S. Sun previously reached out to Eric for comment on the TRO and he did not respond at the time.
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NEWLY DIVORCED
Eric revealed on Vanderpump Villa that he was newly divorced, but did not go into details on his past relationships on the show.
He was married from September 2019 to November 2022 when his ex had filed for divorce in another state after moving, The U.S. Sun can exclusively reveal.
The divorce was finalized on February 9, 2023, just months before the Vanderpump Rules spinoff began filming.
ANOTHER TROUBLED STAR
The U.S. Sun reported mixologist Andre Mitchell also had some court-related issues when he was busted for two DWIs, driving while intoxicated.
According to court documents exclusively obtained by The U.S. Sun, Andre was arrested in March 2020 and October 2018 in the state ofTexaswhere the star is from.
In his 2020 case - which ultimately dismissed his 2018 case - cops charged him after observing "bloodshot" and "glossy" eyes, "slurred speech," "swaying" and "stumbling" when walking, and a "strong" alcoholic beverage odor from his mouth.
After a court appearance on September 22, 2021, in which he plead no contest, Andre was placed on 12 months probation.
He was ordered to complete a drug and alcohol assessment at Counseling and Education Services (CES), participate in a drunk driving panel class and complete a DWI Offender Certified Education Class among other things.
Andre was officially discharged from probation in September 2022.
WHAT'S NEXT?
It has yet to be officially announced by Hulu if there will be a second season of Vanderpump Villa.
In a recent interview with Decider, Lisa, who is an executive producer and stars on the show, revealed what she would do differently if there were another season.
She spilled to the outlet that she might "have another house completely full of staff waiting to replace them."
The U.S. Sun reported that Villa "could be replacing" Vanderpump Rules after Season 11 ratings declined.
The Bravo show premiered on January 30, which brought in over 1.3million viewers, but is now seeing between 930k to 988k viewers each new episode, according to TV ratings.
A source told The U.S. Sun, "Many may not know this, but Vanderpump Villa is actually a test to see if it can be as big of a show as Vanderpump Rules.
"Lisa is keeping an eye on the audience's reaction.
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"Villa could replace Rules in the future, especially if VPR continues to sink and there aren't as interesting storylines unfolding."
The U.S. Sun has reached out to Hulu and Eric for comment and they did not immediately respond.
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