***The Real Housewives of New York City***alum Aviva Drescher defendedJill Zarin's remarks about Bad Bunny's Super Bowl performance, saying they were dumb but that Zarin isn't a racist.
"I've known Jill since 2011, since I joined Housewives," Drescher said on the Miss Understood With Rachel Uchitelpodcast. "Even though we didn't work together, we became friendly. I've never thought of Jill to be racist, and that was really the thing that stung. That was just the most awful about her tirade."
While Drescher wasn't necessarily defending Zarin's comment, she wanted to make it clear that her musing didn't come from a bad place. "That was just the kicker, and I think it was just a completely stupid comment," she said. "It came off as completely racist, but I don't think she's racist. I don't think it came from a hateful place. It was completely stupid." Drescher added, "I would never think about doing a show with somebody who I thought was racist."
Zarin posted a video to Instagram where she commented on Bad Bunny's performance. "It was the worst halftime show ever," she said. "I just don't think it was appropriate to have it in Spanish, and, quite frankly … grabbing his [groin] area … I think it was totally inappropriate. You've got all these young kids watching the Super Bowl, and he doesn't have to be grabbing himself every five seconds because he's so insecure. Seriously."
"I don't speak Spanish. I would've liked to have known the words he was saying," Zarin added. "To me, it looked like a political statement because there were literally no white people in the entire thing. I'm not taking a side, one way or the other … I think it was an ICE thing. I think that the NFL sold out, and it's very sad."
Zarin, who had been set to return to reality TV with the *RHONY*-adjacent series The Golden Life on E!, was swiftly criticized for her comments. Fans took to social media to say they would no longer watch the show, prompting Zarin to delete the video - but producers ultimately fired her from the series.
Copyright 2026 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved