There’s going to be at least a little heaviness in just about every drama movie out there, because it’s in the name, really. Dramas deal with difficult things, or personal struggles, and sometimes broader ideas, or, like, groups of people working through something immense. As boring as it might be to be the 500,000,00th person to bring it up, The Shawshank Redemption really is a quintessential drama, and one where there’s a balance of intense moments of hardship and quite a bit by way of moments that are inspiring and hopeful.

With the following films, though, there’s a focus on hardship and sadness. These are the heaviest drama movies of all time, and they’re either devoid of hope, or what little traces by way of silver linings that they might have are incredibly dim. There will also be a focus on dramas over anything else, so even if something notoriously heavy like Come and See might be labeled a drama, it’s primarily – and usually – described as a war movie, or at least a war-drama, so it doesn’t qualify for this particular ranking.

10

‘An Elephant Sitting Still’ (2018)

Image via KimStim

Even if you think you’ve seen it all, movie-wise, there are still almost guaranteed to be parts of An Elephant Sitting Still that’ll rattle you. Part of that has to do with the film being remarkably long, as in almost four hours, so there’s a lot here that is dark when, like, the whole film is about several people trying to get by while living lives defined by various personal struggles.

It is grounded in that way, and the kind of movie where it’s easy to forget you’re watching one. It’s a cliché to call a movie hypnotic, but An Elephant Sitting Still really is, since there’s a unique rhythm here and all the long takes prove immersive, too. The legacy of the film, and the story behind its production and release (if you want to read up on that… it is really bleak, though, as a warning), does also inevitably add to the heaviness of An Elephant Sitting Still, and its ultimate/undeniable haunting quality.

9

‘Scenes from a Marriage’ (1974)

Image via Cinematograph AB

While not as long as An Elephant Sitting Still, the theatrical version of Scenes from a Marriage is still pretty much epic-length, though the scope of the movie (and its premise) definitely aren’t in line with what you’d expect to see in an epic. Basically, it is a bunch of scenes, many of them long and most of them involving some kind of argument between a married couple who are going through a divorce.

When Marriage Story came out, it was pretty easy to compare it to Scenes from a Marriage, though that’s also got a little more by way of hope. And the same can probably be said for Kramer vs. Kramer. Scenes from a Marriage is more intense, and very subversive/bitter if you want to consider it a romance film of sorts. It is primarily a drama, though, and one all about falling out of love rather than falling in love, so it feels like it qualifies for present purposes.

8

‘Bicycle Thieves’ (1948)

Unlike some of the other dramas here, there isn’t any graphic or shocking content in Bicycle Thieves, and it ultimately finds other ways to be incredibly downbeat. It’s about a man trying to provide for his family in Italy, during the post-war years, and eventually finding a job that requires a bicycle, only for everything to be placed in jeopardy once that, you know, bicycle thief strikes.

Much of it’s about this man and his son going around, trying to find the stolen bicycle, and how the desperation inherent to an already desperate situation intensifies. Bicycle Thieves is simultaneously sad and very simple, and one of those films that shows how you can make something cinematically compelling out of pretty much anything. It’s also hard to imagine many people watching this and somehow not feeling at least the slightest bit moved by what they see.

7

‘Sátántangó’ (1994)

Image via Vega Film

Advertisement

One of the biggest endurance tests in cinema history, Sátántangó (based on an also harrowing novel) goes for about 430 minutes, and it feels some level of soul-crushing, dull, and emotionally empty for almost every single one of those minutes. It’s like a slice-of-life movie where life just sucks, and there’s nothing for anyone, and nothing matters. People live in a tiny village, and living in a tiny village sucks. One guy comes through the town and inspires hope, but he also sucks, since he has his own nefarious scheme he’s trying to execute.

It’s non-stop misery, and then the pacing feels the opposite of non-stop, since Sátántangó is one of the slowest films ever made. It’s glacially paced by design, sure, but still. There also isn’t really any other genre you can argue this one fits into. It’s a straightforward drama, never threatening to be funny like a comedy, or exciting like a thriller, or (traditionally) scary like a horror movie. This is enough, though, for some to consider it one of the best films of its decade… somehow.

6

‘The Conformist’ (1970)

Image via Paramount Pictures

Compared to Sátántangó, The Conformist almost feels like an action movie, or at least a thriller, but it is still pretty methodical and patiently paced in the overall scheme of things, not to mention more of a political drama than anything else. Well, maybe a psychological drama, too. It’s about a man who attempts to carry out the assassination of someone he used to look up to, mostly due to him becoming politically and morally compromised.

It’s a film about fascism, evil, and human nature. It is also incredibly beautiful, at least to look at, so The Conformist can be considered an arthouse film quite comfortably, if that counts as a genre. Still, if that’s not a genre, then it’s a drama, and an oddly hard-hitting one, albeit in ways that aren’t too easy to describe. It gets under your skin and stays there, itching/bothering you a lot, rather than punching you in your gut the way a bunch of the other movies being mentioned here opt to do. And speaking of movies that go right for the gut…

5

‘Requiem for a Dream’ (2000)

Image via Artisan Entertainment

This is probably the most nightmarish a non-horror movie can feel. Requiem for a Dream is… well, the hint at the nightmarish is there in the title. It’s the death of a dream, and the dream’s replaced by a nightmare. It’s hard not to feel this way during and after the film, as Requiem for a Dream might well be one of the least subtle movies in cinema history.

It’s blunt with a purpose, though, in trying to showcase the worst-case scenario for a few people who all get addicted to some kind of substance and have it tear their respective lives apart in a variety of ways. The misery here is pretty consistent, and also works well to feel more intense on a pretty much scene-by-scene basis, all crescendoing to inevitable tragedy (and it’s not the fact that it is a tragedy which is the surprising part… more so just how in-your-face that tragedy is and, ultimately, how tragic things get).

4

‘4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days’ (2007)

Image via Mobra Films

4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days is entirely uncompromising, but has to be, to get across the message it wants to. It’s a Romanian film about a young pregnant woman who works with her friend to find a way to get a black-market abortion at a time in Romania’s history when doing so was illegal, and then the various risks (health-related and also what might happen if they’re caught) are unpacked in grueling detail.

Everything here is presented in a way that feels uncomfortably grounded, so if anything, you might well wish 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days was less immersive than it is. Though, again, that does give the film its power, and sure, it’s about a divisive issue, so you might not agree with what it’s trying to say – and where it does fall on the abortion debate – but it’s hard not to acknowledge or even admire just how impactfully this argument/message is presented.

3

‘Mysterious Skin’ (2004)

Image via Tartan Films

If there’s anything by way of a silver lining or some kind of inspiring thing to be found in Mysterious Skin, you do have to look very hard, but it says something about finding strength in bonds with others. That’s something, and it stands out when everything else here is so crushing. It is, ultimately, about two young men who find they share some kind of upsetting past, and that sense of having someone to relate to… again, it’s something.

It’s the way the film unpacks that past, though, and what Mysterious Skin deals with thematically that makes it so challenging to watch. What it shows isn’t necessarily overly graphic, but the subject matter is a lot to grapple with. Mysterious Skin is incredible, though, and right up there among the very best films being mentioned here. It’s just also one that you could understand most people not really wanting to watch, simply because of what it deals with (yes, that stuff was skirted around here, but go read up on the movie if you want to know; find some commentary that isn’t required to be essentially PG-rated and stuff).

2

‘Harakiri’ (1962)

Image via Shochiku

Since there’s a focus on samurai culture/morality and, eventually, a little by way of bloody action, you could almost say Harakiri is a martial arts movie… just one that really doesn’t emphasize action at all. It’s much more of a drama, and there are only a few minutes of fighting in a movie that runs for more than two hours, and proves gut-wrenching in some very visceral ways for much of that runtime.

Harakiri is about a man who wants to take his own life in the titular ritual, but he also wants to explain why he’s been driven to that point to a samurai clan, all before taking part in this ritual before them. Much of it’s told in a series of flashbacks that start grim, and then keep getting all the more upsetting. Compared to other films about samurai (even those that don’t spend too much time on action/fight sequences and choose instead to focus on drama and/or tragedy), this is particularly heavy-going stuff.

Advertisement

Harakiri

Release Date

Advertisement

September 15, 1962

Runtime

133 Minutes

Advertisement

Director

Masaki Kobayashi

Writers

Advertisement

Shinobu Hashimoto

Advertisement

• 

  Tatsuya Nakadai

  Hanshiro Tsugumo

  Advertisement
• 

  Akira Ishihama

  Motome Chijiiwa

• 

  Shima Iwashita

  Advertisement

  Miho Tsugumo

• 

  Tetsurô Tanba

  Hikokuro Omodaka

  Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

1

‘The Seventh Continent’ (1989)

Image via Wega Film

Some people might push back against the idea that The Seventh Continent is the most heavy-going Michael Haneke movie, but that could be because it’s not quite as well-known as the likes of The Piano Teacher and Amour. Those are also emotionally intense, of course, but The Seventh Continent has even more by way of dread, building it up for a very long time before, uh, something happens.

That’s the other hard part. If you say what makes this film as devastating as it is, you kind of ruin the whole thing. If you’re in any way familiar with Haneke, you’ll expect something emotionally and psychologically harrowing, yet this really goes the extra mile, when it gets to the point where it’s ready to. The Seventh Continent should be watched the one time, and then probably never again. Good luck finding anyone who’s either seen it twice, or has already seen it and one day wants to watch it for a second time.

Miniseries are all the rage in the streaming era, but streaming services didn’t pioneer miniseries. In fact, networks like HBO have been doing it for a while now, and HBO itself has practically perfected the art of the limited series (AKA miniseries). For decades now, they have been the undisputed home of content like this, producing dense, cinematic stories that know how to make a grand statement in just a handful of episodes.

Combing through HBO’s staggering library, we can find a bunch of flawless shows that have a few episodes only. They’re perfect for binge-watching and a quick weekend break away from reality, without any wasted moments. Packed with incredible performances, airtight writing, and memorable stories, here are the perfect HBO miniseries with six episodes or fewer.

‘Parade’s End’ (2013)

Image via BBC Two

A symbolic and somewhat forgotten member of prestige TV is Parade’s End, a drama directed by Susanna White, written by the legendary Tom Stoppard, and featuring Benedict Cumberbatch in one of his greatest TV performances. Parade’s End was adapted from Ford Madox Ford‘s notoriously dense novel tetralogy; while five episodes may not feel adequate for adapting the entire story, the miniseries does a great job of capturing the slow, painful death of the old Edwardian world order under the weight of modern warfare, which is the entire point of the tetralogy.

Set during the early 20th century, the series follows Christopher Tietjens (Cumberbatch), a principled aristocrat trapped in a destructive marriage with the cruel and manipulative socialite Sylvia (played with icy perfection by Rebecca Hall). While he suffers through this emotional warfare, he finds himself increasingly drawn to a young suffragette, Valentine Wannop (Adelaide Clemens), during the outbreak of World War I. It can be a demanding, slow-burning watch that emphasizes the characters’ inner turmoil over any action, but the performances are uniformly magnificent. It is a perfect, almost academic exercise in character studies; many critics have called Parade’s End “Downton Abbey‘s darker half.”

‘Mildred Pierce’ (2011)

Image via HBO

Mildred Pierce was adapted from James M. Cain‘s 1941 novel of the same name, and this HBO miniseries by director/writer/producer Todd Haynes is the second adaptation of the novel. The first was the 1945 film noir starring Joan Crawford, while the miniseries takes the same story and stretches it into a sprawling five-part Depression-era epic starring Kate Winslet in the same role as Crawford. Despite gaining a fairly limited audience response upon release, Mildred Pierce swept the Emmys, with Winslet taking home the Best Actress Emmy for her powerful leading performance.

Mildred Pierce follows Winslet as the titular character, a newly single mother who, after leaving her husband during the Great Depression, scraps and claws her way to financial independence by building a successful restaurant from the ground up. However, the drama isn’t just about scraping by; it’s a psychological dissection of motherhood and class aspiration. Mildred’s fatal flaw is her obsessive, unrequited love for her monstrously ambitious and ungrateful daughter, Veda (Evan Rachel Wood), who despises her mother for her perceived “common” roots. Mildred Pierce is a perfect blueprint for how to adapt a classic noir into a modern prestige TV series, and this one’s still heavily talked about among fans.

‘I Know This Much Is True’ (2020)

If you are looking for a light, fun watch, run far away from I Know This Much Is True. However, if you want to watch one of the most actorly tours de force ever committed to television, then this is the right choice for you. Mark Ruffalo pulls off a miraculous double performance as Dominick and Thomas Birdsey, identical twins whose lives are shattered by tragedy and mental illness; the story is exhausting, relentless, and emotionally devastating, but Ruffalo’s commitment is undeniable. He won a Primetime Emmy, a SAG, and a Golden Globe for his performance.

In I Know This Much Is True, Thomas Birdsey suffers from debilitating paranoid schizophrenia; one day, he has a horrific public breakdown that he justifies as an act to stop the Gulf War, but this only lands him in a maximum-security asylum. Dominick, his twin, spends the entirety of the six-hour run trying to navigate bureaucratic hell to free his brother while simultaneously unraveling his own traumatic past. I Know This Much Is True is a perfect, harrowing study of familial trauma that uses its six episodes to make you feel overwhelming sympathy and despair before giving you some genuine hope.

‘Years and Years’ (2019)

Image via HBO

Advertisement

Though still heavily underrated, Russell T. Davies‘ Years and Years is one of the scariest dystopian science fiction series of the 21st century. The miniseries uses the intimate scale of a family home to ground massive, world-ending events, making global doom feel aggressively personal, affecting every member of the family in a certain way. For a show that depicts the end of the world across six one-hour episodes, Years and Years moves with a fast, witty pace that never feels dull or overwhelming.

Years and Years follows an ordinary Manchester family, the Lyons, over the course of fifteen years starting in 2019, but the truth is that the fictional future it depicts feels terrifyingly plausible. As the years tick by in the show, the world succumbs to economic collapse, authoritarian government surveillance, refugee crises, the rise of transhumanism, and the political schemes of a populist billionaire played by the fantastic Emma Thompson. There are moments when the show feels less like science fiction and more like a news broadcast, but despite its freakish realism, Years and Years is perfect and essential viewing.

‘We Own This City’ (2022)

Image via HBO

In We Own This City, David Simon, the creator of The Wire, returns to Baltimore, but he isn’t here to show us the noble corners of the drug trade this time. This time, he is here to show us the rot from the inside out, the institutional kind. But it’s not fair to compare it to The Wire, which feels like a literary journey. We Own This City is, much rather, a quick, direct punch to the gut, a systemic critique of institutional failure without charming antiheroes and redemption arcs. The miniseries boasts a 93% Certified Fresh rating, but it still feels heavily underseen by wider audiences. Here’s time to fix that.

We Own This City is a six-part, journalistic deep dive into the real-life rise and fall of the Baltimore Police Department’s Gun Trace Task Force (GTTF), a plainclothes unit that was meant to be busting criminals, while they themselves were the actual criminals. Led by a mesmerizing Jon Bernthal as Sergeant Wayne Jenkins, the show depicts how this elite squad turned into a crew of violent robbers and racketeers who stole millions of dollars while trampling on civil rights. We Own This City is simply a portrait of total corruption and a great watch that still condemns this kind of behavior.

‘Olive Kitteridge’ (2014)

Image via HBO

Olive Kitteridge might be the most efficient character study on this list, yet it spans 25 years in the life of its titular character while taking up only four hours of runtime (four one-hour episodes). The miniseries follows Olive but is, more than anything, a portrait of her depression, which she uses as a bitter, defensive mechanism to push away the people who love her most, including her husband and son. Created by Jane Anderson and directed entirely by Lisa Cholodenko, this adaptation of Elizabeth Strout‘s novel swept the Emmy Awards, taking home eight, including Outstanding Limited Series.

Frances McDormand plays Olive, a sharp-tongued and deeply depressed middle-school math teacher living in the fictional seaside town of Crosby, Maine. On the surface, she is rude to her loving husband Henry (Richard Jenkins), alienates her son Christopher (John Gallagher Jr.), and lashes out at anyone who gets too close. But under that surface hides a vast, lonely ocean of pain that Olive continuously masks with her stinging personality. Olive Kitteridge is a masterpiece about the stubbornness of the human heart, embodied perfectly by McDormand, a tour de force in pretty much everything she does.

‘Angels in America’ (2003)

Image via HBO

Angels in America is Mike Nichols‘ six-episode adaptation of Tony Kushner‘s Pulitzer Prize-winning play, and it remains the gold standard for short-form series. It is a fantasia about national themes, including religion, politics, and sexuality. The cast is packed, from Al Pacino and Meryl Streep to Mary Louise Parker and Jeffrey Wright, who all won Emmys for their performances, both lead and supporting. In 2004, Angels in America broke the record for the most Emmys won by a miniseries in a single year (11 wins), but its depiction of the AIDS epidemic remains the most important part of this fascinating series.

Angels in America is set in New York City during the mid-1980s, and it follows Prior Walter (Justin Kirk), a gay man dying of AIDS; during his hospital stay, he is visited by a celestial Angel, who declares him a prophet and gives him a message from the angels to humanity. The series also weaves in the stories of Louis Ironson (Ben Shenkman), Prior’s lover who abandons him out of fear, Roy Cohn (Pacino), the real-life closeted lawyer and political fixer who is also dying of AIDS but denying it, and Joe Pitt (Patrick Wilson), a closeted lawyer working for Roy. Angels in America relies on visual grandiosity and fantasy, but it’s an intimate portrait of living with AIDS and the closeted life.

‘Chernobyl’ (2019)

Image via HBO

Chernobyl is a five-episode historical thriller miniseries that depicts the 1986 Soviet nuclear disaster and the catastrophic, downright infuriating cleanup that followed. Chernobyl meticulously plays out as a procedural about how a system swimming in denial turns a manageable accident into a world-ending catastrophe; it also depicts how the disaster affected ordinary people, workers’ families, and residents who lived near the disaster site. Chernobyl is widely regarded as the best miniseries of the 21st century, winning multiple Emmys and the Golden Globe for Best Miniseries.

Chernobyl begins with a disaster: the core of the Chernobyl nuclear power plant is exposed, but the lead engineer denies it. Following the explosion, Valery Legasov (Jared Harris), a renowned Soviet scientist, is brought in to lead the cleanup efforts. He’s joined by the cynical deputy chairman, Boris Shcherbina (Stellan Skarsgård), and Ulana Khomyuk (Emily Watson), a physicist tasked with discovering the ugly truth. Many characters are real, but one of the exceptions is Khomyuk, who is a fictional amalgamation of various scientists who worked on solving the mystery of the explosion. Chernobyl shows the explosion in the first episode, leaving the remaining four to explore the contradictions of the bureaucratic cleanup, as well as the exposure of the first responders on the explosion site. It’s a tragedy about the cost of truth and a must-see for any HBO fan or history buff.

Advertisement

Chernobyl

Advertisement

Release Date

2019 – 2019

Network

Advertisement

HBO

Showrunner

Craig Mazin

Advertisement

Directors

Johan Renck

Advertisement

Advertisement

Advertisement

By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 13 seconds ago

Last year, James Gunn’s Superman blew audiences away by introducing an infectiously fun alternative to the Marvel Cinematic Universe. While the MCU helped mainstream the snarky-but-nonthreatening school of “well, that just happened” humor, Superman offered a cinematic universe that took its cues from the titular hero. It was bright, colorful, and delightfully earnest from beginning to end. Walking into Supergirl, I was hoping for more of the same. Unfortunately, the movie is a large step back for the DCU, one that is constantly biting Marvel’s style. It wants to be DC’s Guardians of the Galaxy; instead, it’s dangerously close to being DC’s answer to Thor: The Dark World.

Like that infamous Marvel movie, Supergirl presents great performances from its lead actors. Milly Alcock is effortlessly great as the woman of steel, and in his brief appearances, David Corenswet is all colorful confidence and charisma. Jason Momoa, meanwhile, is so perfect as Lobo that you’ll be clamoring for a solo movie after his very first scene. Unfortunately, great performances aren’t enough to create a great movie, and like Thor: The Dark World Before It,  Craig Gillespie’s Supergirl suffers under the weight of mediocre writing, murky cinematography, and poor chemistry between otherwise strong actors. Overall, it has great moments, but they are stifled by missteps that serve as the film’s fatal Kryptonite.

In Space, No One Can Hear You Bark

Supergirl’s story begins with her traveling the universe with Krypto, her faithful dog. She’s doing a kind of intergalactic pub crawl to celebrate her birthday, but to get properly drunk, she has to hang out on planets with a red sun, which nullifies her powers. Eventually, some Brigands steal her ship, and their leader shoots Krypto with a poison that only he can cure. This forces Supergirl to travel the galaxy with a surprise companion: a teenager whose entire family was slaughtered by the Brigand’s boss, leaving her with nothing but a keen blood and a keener taste for vengeance.

There are several things Supergirl does very well, starting with its featured performers. Milly Alcock is perfect as the titular heroine and gives a surprisingly complex performance. The character is not just a superpowered badass: she’s also a young woman caught between the trauma of her past and the challenges of building a future for herself. She’s also constantly worried about Krypto, as the power pooch has only three days to live. The role arguably asks more of Alcock than Superman asked of David Corenswet, and she handles everything with a vibrance and versatility that will leave you hungry for more Supergirl appearances in the future. 

Fun (But Cheap) Thrills

Speaking of Corenswet, he appears very little in this film, but he remains an inspiringly optimistic hero, one that Alcock’s snarky heroine bounces off of. However, Corenswet may now have competition for the coolest dude in the DCU thanks to Jason Momoa. The former Aquaman actor is the spitting image of Lobo, one of the most over-the-top characters DC ever created. He steals every scene he’s in, and it’s not hard to see why: Lobo’s whole role in the film is to drop hilarious one-liners and then aura farming his way through fight scenes. Momoa has wanted to play this character for years, and his passion for the role shines in every scene.

One of Supergirl’s other great strengths is its humor. While not as laugh-out-loud funny as Superman, the movie has several solid gags throughout its svelte runtime. Plus, it’s almost impossible not to laugh whenever Lobo opens his big mouth. There are some great action scenes, including a climactic final battle that shows just how dangerous Supergirl can be when she finally unleashes her full powers. Throw in some other memorable characters, hilariously irreverent dialogue, and a genuinely unpredictable plot, and you have a superhero film that’s relatively good. Unfortunately, DCU guru James Gunn needed this second DCU film to be really great, and in that, it misses the mark.

It’s All Downhill From Here

A major problem with Supergirl is the pacing. The film can never quite decide whether it wants to be a relatively sedate space road trip or an action extravaganza, and it settles, quite frustratingly, right in the middle. There’s plenty of world-building going on as Supergirl treks through the stars; unfortunately, the world it builds just isn’t that interesting. Many of the alien designs are just aggressively boring, and the villains (extraterrestrial brigands named, well, the Brigands) are painfully one-dimensional. That’s especially true of Krem, a Big Bad with no personality or defining traits other than leering menacingly at the camera from time to time.

When Supergirl decides to deliver the goods (like with the aforementioned climactic battle), it’s truly awesome, offering audiences everything they bought a ticket for and then some. Unfortunately, there just aren’t that many of these scenes, and when we do get an onscreen fight, there’s a 50/50 chance you won’t be able to see much of anything. That’s partially due to the baffling choice of having Supergirl’s coolest moments from the first half of the movie basically happen offscreen while other characters hard. And it’s partially due to the movie looking inexplicably dreary: outside of the title character’s colorful uniform, the film largely alternates between muted grays and piss filter yellows. 

A Movie That Keeps Missing The Mark

The final sin of this film is that there is surprisingly little chemistry. I just never really felt much of a connection between Milly Alcock and Eve Ridley, who plays the most annoying genre trope of all: the kid sidekick. Unfortunately, their relationship is meant to be the beating heart of the movie, which is probably why much of Supergirl feels so lifeless. Our heroine similarly has no chemistry with the Big Bad or even with Lobo; in fact, she is ultimately just one more character for him to bounce funny one-liners off of. Eventually, things just get stale, especially because we all know that Supergirl’s cute dog will ultimately be just fine.

The result is a decidedly mixed bag. Supergirl isn’t a bad movie, and if you’re a DC fan, you’ll find plenty to enjoy. But it’s not a great movie either, especially for a film that has to follow in the footsteps of last year’s Superman. The action is solid…when you can actually see it. The performances are awesome, but nobody has any chemistry. The effects are great, but the designs are awful. It’s a hodge-podge of a film that makes for a modestly entertaining way to kill a summer afternoon. But it’s ultimately a movie that squanders the talents of Milly Alcock and Jason Momoa while killing almost all the forward momentum of this burgeoning cinematic universe.

Joe Manganiello is opening up about one of the darkest chapters of his life, revealing the painful reality behind a years-long health battle he kept hidden from the public.

While fans saw the actor continuing to work and appear at events, he says he was privately fighting a mysterious illness, enduring devastating treatments, and searching for answers that even leading specialists struggled to provide.

For years, Joe Manganiello chose not to reveal the health crisis that was unfolding behind closed doors.

Instead of sharing his struggles publicly, the “Magic Mike” and “True Blood” star says he confided only in a small circle of trusted people while trying to understand what was happening to his body.

In a video shared on Instagram, the 49-year-old actor explained that he had “suffered in silence, battling a deadly mystery illness” while doctors worked to identify the cause of his condition.

Advertisement

Despite consulting what he described as “the best doctors in the world,” Manganiello said he was left without clear answers.

The uncertainty only added to the emotional weight of the experience as specialists tried different treatments in hopes of slowing the illness.

Instead of bringing relief, those treatments introduced a new set of challenges that would remain with him for years.

Brutal Treatments Changed Joe Manganiello’s Life

Manganiello revealed that the medications prescribed during his search for a diagnosis ultimately came at a steep cost.

“All their attempts to treat it with high-powered biological drugs only exacerbated my symptoms and then unlocked a host of brutal side effects that winded up plaguing me for years,” he explained in the Instagram video.

Advertisement

The actor said his worsening condition forced doctors to pursue increasingly aggressive medical procedures.

“And then in attempts to buy myself time, I underwent very serious operations and procedures that mutilated parts of my body,” Manganiello shared.

According to the actor, the procedures left him physically devastated. He explained that he became “so weak” that there were times he could not “stand up or walk.”

Months of recovery followed as he remained “heavily medicated” while dealing with “excruciating bouts of chronic pain.”

Advertisement

The experience has remained largely private until now, with Manganiello choosing to tell the full story through his upcoming memoir, “Bloodlines,” which is scheduled for release on October 13.

Manganiello Searched Beyond Traditional Medicine

As his health crisis continued without clear medical answers, Joe Manganiello began questioning whether there was a deeper explanation behind everything he was experiencing.

Reflecting on the title of his memoir, the actor explained that “Bloodlines” represents far more than a personal health story. During his illness, he spent roughly a decade tracing his family’s history, hoping it might explain why his life had taken such an unexpected turn.

“Maybe what happened to me wasn’t random,” he said.

That search gradually expanded beyond conventional medicine.

Advertisement

He shared, “And that in order to heal, my mind, my body, my spirit all had to align and I needed to become open to some really radical and unorthodox techniques and ideas that lie beyond the boundaries of western medicine.”

According to information released alongside the memoir, Manganiello explored a wide range of unconventional paths while searching for answers, including shamans, pagan rituals, ancient myths, long-lost family records, and the rediscovery of his spirituality.

His genealogy research also uncovered relatives who survived the Armenian genocide, along with family members who had experienced chronic illnesses of their own.

The actor believes those discoveries helped reshape the way he viewed both his illness and his own identity.

Advertisement

‘Bloodlines’ Explores Survival Beyond The Diagnosis

Joe Manganiello first disclosed the extent of his medical journey when announcing “Bloodlines,” revealing that he had spent seven years battling what the book describes as “a cascade of autoimmune-related illnesses.”

According to the publisher, those illnesses affected multiple parts of his body, including his skin, thyroid, eyes, lungs, and digestive system.

According to the Daily Mail, the synopsis also reveals that the ordeal involved “plagued by chronic pain, a life-saving organ amputation, existential crisis, and a prolonged fight for survival that left doctors with few answers and no clear explanation.”

Rather than focusing solely on the physical symptoms, the memoir explores the emotional impact of living with uncertainty while trying to maintain a successful career and public life.

The official description explains, “More than a memoir of medical crisis, it is a searching account of what happens when the life you have constructed can no longer contain the truth of what you carry.”

Advertisement

It continues, “Deeply personal and emotionally expansive, Bloodlines considers how the past lives on in the body and in the stories we tell about strength, survival, and selfhood. The result is both a page-turning, heart-pounding story for the ages and an essential meditation on inheritance, loss, and the work of living with what remains.”

Joe Manganiello Offers Hope To Others Still Searching

Although the actor’s journey involved years of pain, uncertainty, and life-altering procedures, he hopes sharing his experience will encourage others facing similar battles.

Instead of allowing the illness to define him, Manganiello said the experience changed how he views healing, resilience, and the connection between physical and emotional well-being.

He ended his message with encouragement for people who may still be searching for answers to unexplained medical conditions.

“If you’re out there and you’re suffering, there’s hope,” he said.

Advertisement

As readers prepare for the release of “Bloodlines,” Manganiello’s story promises to reveal the full scope of a health battle that remained hidden from public view for years.

His memoir aims to tell not only the story of surviving a mysterious illness, but also of finding purpose through one of the most difficult periods of his life.

Former “Vanderpump Rules” star Tom Sandoval began dating model Victoria Lee Robinson in early 2024. However, more recently, there have been rumors of trouble in paradise, with multiple reports saying they’d broken up. Now, the 33-year-old model has been arrested after an alleged attack, and the “VPR” alum has requested a restraining order.

TMZ obtained court documents that state that Robinson attacked Sandoval on the night of June 3, both verbally and physically. Per the legal filing, this came after a night of drinking. This was described as the final straw in their relationship, and it allegedly wasn’t the first time she’d attacked the former “Vanderpump Rules” star.

Per the court documents, this all started when Sandoval and Robinson were having a verbal argument. However, during the fight, he noticed that she had been filming him. After this, her dad, who has been living with them, is said to have had an aggressive response to the fight, and Sandoval then locked himself in a room for protection.

From there, she is accused of hitting him in the face following the verbal fight, causing him to experience blurry vision.

Tom Sandoval Called The Police On Victoria Lee Robinson

Following the alleged attack from Robinson, Sandoval called the police. They later arrived at the scene and investigated the altercation. In the end, they arrested the model. Robinson’s father, Will Robinson, is said to have lunged at the “VPR” alum and put him into a bear hug.

The father’s attack on Sandoval is said to have happened right before she assaulted him. Regarding past abuse, the former Bravo star claims she has punched him in the face, thrown a full Gatorade bottle at him, and exhibited various forms of verbal abuse.

Additionally, he accuses her of changing the passwords for both his phone and his social media accounts. Sandoval also says she tracked him using Apple Airtags. She is also said to have referred to him as a “f-cking loser.”

Tom And Victoria Previously Unfollowed Each Other

As mentioned, Sandoval and Robinson began dating in early 2024. Since then, he has been open about their relationship following his “Vanderpump Rules” exit. However, according to RealityBlurb, the two unfollowed one another on social media in May 2026.

After that, she posted a cryptic Instagram Stories message. The model said, “I never really open up on social media about my personal life, but the past couple of weeks have been pretty tough. My grandpa has stage 4 cancer and is currently on hospice, and my mom is also going through heartbreak after recently losing our childhood cat and now losing another one.”

She added, “I think I just need a couple [of] prayers and well wishes sent to my family right now. In times like these, you definitely see who’s there for you and who’s not. Sorry for the little vent. Love you, guys.”

Tom Recently Said Victoria Was The One

TMZ interviewed Sandoval in March 2026 while he was in New York City. During the chat, he was asked for an update on his relationship with Robinson. The reality star said, “I’m enjoying my experiences. I went to the ‘Outlander’ premiere a couple of days ago, and it was awesome.”

He then said, “My girlfriend and I just celebrated our two-year anniversary. After that, the reporter asked if Sandoval planned to take their relationship to the next level, regarding a potential proposal. He stated, “Oh, yeah. Probably.”

The Bravo Star Has Discussed His Reality TV Future

Sandoval’s time on “Vanderpump Rules” ended in late 2024 when Bravo decided to reboot the long-running show. Since then, many have wondered whether he plans to join “The Valley,” a spin-off of “VPR.”

He spoke to Us Weekly in March 2026 about it, saying, “I’ve gone back and forth about ‘The Valley,’ you know, wanting to be on it, not wanting to be on it. Sandoval was also unsure whether Robinson would want to join him on the show, stating, “She goes back and forth about it.”

He added, “It can be overwhelming. I mean, you know, she sees how polarizing and how intense the fans can be.”

Love Island USA bombshell Alannah Keyser was officially removed from Casa Amor after her screen time was reduced over a racism scandal.

Peacock confirmed Alannah’s departure during the Thursday, June 25, episode of the show. Alannah recently faced backlash off screen for a resurfaced video that allegedly showed her using a racial slur. After her debut, social media users quickly took to all platforms to share a video where a woman appeared to use the N-word while singing along to a song.

The video and posts were not shared publicly until after Alannah’s appearance on the show and thus were not accessible during the vetting process.

Amid the scandal, Alannah’s friend Nick Rogers spoke out about the situation.

Related: ‘Love Island USA‘ Season 8 Couples: Who Is Still Together? Who Broke Up?

Love Island USA is all about coupling up — so which Islanders are currently together and which have already called it quits in the villa? Peacock’s popular dating show returned in June 2026 with contestants Aniya Harvey, Beatriz Hatz, Bryce Alakai Dettloff, KC Chandler, Mackenzie “Kenzie” Annis, Melanie Moreno, Sincere Rhea, Sean Reifel, Trinity Tatum […]

“She is very caring and the nicest person ever. She has never exhibited any racist traits around me at all,” Nick said via TikTok on Monday, June 22. “I have never once considered the fact that Alannah would be someone who’d be racist.”

Nick claimed news screenshots of Alannah’s past correspondences that have since been circulating online are “fake,” adding, “I just can’t imagine, me knowing Alannah, her posting that on social media. And we all know with this AI and everything like that, it could be very easy for these types of scenarios to be manipulated.”

Nick went on to explain why he was publicly defending Alannah.

“I looked at the video myself, and I cannot tell whether she is saying the N-word or not,” he added. “That is a very touchy subject that I know … has been a big conversation over the years and obviously I do agree that it is very inappropriate for someone who is not a person of color or Black to use that word.”

Nick noted, however, that “it was a different time” when the video was filmed. “If we’re being completely honest, that word was used a lot more freely in past years, like around 2017, 2016, it was kind of a thing,” he continued. “I grew up in a high school that was very diverse, and a lot of people said the word. It doesn’t make it right, but I just wanted to come on here and state my side of the story.”

He concluded: “I think Alannah is a great person, and I would not use any of this information that could be false in order to make a predetermined judgment of her character.”

Thank You!

You have successfully subscribed.

Earlier this season, another contestant made headlines when Vasana Montgomery was cut from season 8 of Love Island USA after resurfaced social media posts showed her using a slur. Love Island USA has previously weathered similar issues with Islanders when Yulissa Escobar left days into the experience in season 7 after clips of her using racial slurs on a podcast circulated online.

Cierra Ortega also faced backlash when a resurfaced social media post showed her using a slur. She was pulled from the villa and later issued an apology for her posts.

New episodes of Love Island USA are released six days a week — except for Wednesdays — on Peacock.

Katy Perry is done holding back her anger.

The singer, 41, released her new song, “Watch It Burn,” on Thursday, June 25, which serves as the sister song to her November 2025 track “Bandaids.”

The song explores the replacement of years of restraint, people-pleasing and silence with the truth, using anger as a vehicle for honesty.

“Said I was too hard to love … For years/ I tried to rise above/ Was only light and love/ But now I’m shut the f*** up,” Perry sings, later adding, “Don’t wanna cause a scene/ But give me the gasoline/ Tonight’s the night/ I light a match/ Throw it hard behind my back/ Gonna try to forgive and forget/ Light a cigarette/ And watch it burn.”

Related: Katy Perry Mends Her ‘Broken Heart’ in Down-on-Her-Luck ‘Bandaids’ Video

Katy Perry is turning to music after upheaval in her personal life. The pop star, 41, dropped her powerful new song, “Bandaids,” and its self-deprecating music video on Thursday, November 6, marking her first release since her split from ex-fiancé Orlando Bloom. In the video, a down-on-her-luck Perry finds herself in a series of near-death […]

Advertisement

In the video, Perry — with a giant scorpion stinger on her backside, a symbol of balance and accepting all parts of oneself — escapes from a hospital and drives through a car wash as she sings about lighting a match and setting fire to the pain and toxicity of her past. As she continues her transformation into a scorpion, Perry ignites her stinger and sets a street on fire. Her journey concludes as she enters a church and collapses to the floor. The churchgoers pick her up and drop her into a bath, where she is baptized, becoming a new woman.

The video features a handful of Easter eggs, including a newsstand with Gaslight Magazine and Slop Times, which Perry burns to the ground. There is also an antique store called Time Will Tell Shoppe and a TV displaying the breaking news story, “Don’t Believe Everything You Hear.”

Prior to dropping the new track, Perry explained her inspiration during a June 17 appearance on her producer Justin Tranter’s “Unfamous” podcast.

“I don’t typically feel like a victim. You can hear it in my songs. I don’t resonate with that,” she said. “But last year was pretty tough and it would have been easy for me to fall into that weird victim triangle.”

Perry elaborated on “wrestling with [her] darkness” on “Watch It Burn,” revealing how the anthem allowed her to tap into a new side of herself.

“I have not given myself permission to be angry my whole life over things where I should be f***ing angry about. What I’ve done is I’ve pushed it down, but I should be f***ing angry,” she noted. “I’m allowed to be angry for a f***ing moment!”

Instead of embracing a “woe is me” mentality, Perry opted to sit with her emotions during the difficult period in her personal life.

“I just was like, ‘OK, let’s just feel this f***ing pain. Let’s feel this pain. Let’s feel this anger and let’s move on. Let’s learn from it also,’” she recalled. “‘Let’s get some feedback from it. Let’s apply it. Let’s learn from it.’”

Perry also hinted at the timeline of the song’s creation, sharing that she wrote it “last March” but finished it in August.

Us Weekly confirmed Perry and Bloom’s split in June 2025. The pair — who share daughter Daisy Dove, 5 — were together for nearly a decade and engaged for six years.

A source exclusively told Us at the time that the breakup was “a long time coming” as things between the two had “been tense for months.”

The following month, reps for Perry and Bloom said in a joint statement to Us that the exes had been “shifting their relationship over the past many months to focus on coparenting,” adding that “their shared priority is — and always will be — raising their daughter with love, stability and mutual respect.”

Advertisement

Related: Katy Perry and Justin Trudeau‘s Relationship Timeline

Katy Perry has sparked fireworks with Justin Trudeau. The “Roar” singer and the former Canadian prime minister were first spotted out to dinner together in Montreal, Canada, in July 2025, just days before Trudeau attended Perry’s Lifetimes Tour stop in the city. A source exclusively told Us Weekly at the time that their outing was […]

Bloom broke his silence on the split during a September 2025 appearance on Today.

“I’m great, man. I’m so grateful. We have the most beautiful daughter,” he said. “You know, when you leave everything on the field, like I did in [The Cut], I feel grateful for all of it.”

Thank You!

You have successfully subscribed.

He added, “We’re great [and] we’re going to be great. It’s nothing but love.”

Perry, for her part, released her first post-breakup song, “Bandaids,” in November 2025, singing about her “broken heart” and how “the love we made was worth it in the end.”

Since calling it quits with Bloom, Perry has moved on with Justin Trudeau, whom she was first linked to in July 2025. Earlier this month, she called the former Canadian prime minister, 54, “the love of my life” during a Tribeca Film Festival Q&A.

By Chris Snellgrove
| Published 8 seconds ago

One of the sexiest characters in Star Trek history is Nurse Chapel. These days, that character is played by Jess Bush on Strange New Worlds, where she enjoys great banter with Dr. M’Benga and an awkward romantic entanglement with Mr. Spock. But in The Original Series, Chapel was played by Majel Barrett, one of the most iconic forces in the franchise. Barrett previously played Number One in Star Trek’s first pilot and went on to voice the Enterprise computer. Later, she was cast as Lwaxana Troi, the overbearing mother to the half-Betazed counselor, Deanna Troi.

As you can tell, Star Trek was pretty good to Majel Barrett. That’s not so surprising, though, considering who her husband was. When The Original Series started, she was dating franchise creator Gene Roddenberry, a man she would later marry. Roddenberry was all too happy to put her in Trek wherever he could, but there was a problem: NBC had already rejected Trek’s pilot, and they wouldn’t want to see Barrett play a different role. She solved this problem by dying her hair and auditioning under a different name, a gamble she knew would be effective because her new blonde hair fooled the man who knew her best: Gene Roddenberry!

Gene’s Number One Gal

Majel Barrett’s introduction to Star Trek is a heartwarming and slightly messy story. She became a mistress to Gene Roddenberry, someone who was already married and had two kids. Roddenberry was all-in on the relationship (he went on to marry) and was enthusiastic about writing her into Trek. So enthusiastic that when he was writing “The Cage,” Trek’s first pilot, he wrote a very prominent role for Barrett: Number One, the first officer to Captain Pike. Unfortunately, NBC didn’t like the pilot, and while they gave Roddenberry the chance to make another, they had two requests: for him to drop both Leonard Nimoy and Majel Barrett from the show.

Roddenberry went to bat for Nimoy, feeling the Spock character was crucial to Star Trek. He agreed to let Barrett go, though, and she didn’t appear in Trek’s second pilot, “Where No Man Has Gone Before.” NBC loved the pilot and ordered the show to series. Afterwards, starting in “The Naked Time,” Barrett appeared as a very different character: Nurse Chapel, someone who loved flirting with Spock. Barrett knew she’d have to sneak by NBC executives to appear on Trek again, so she dyed her hair blonde and visited Roddenberry’s office. He didn’t recognize her at first, and Barrett made a declaration: “By God, if I could fool you, I can fool NBC.’”

Blondes Have More Fun (Or At Least, More Roles)

Majel Barrett got the part, and she appeared throughout Star Trek: The Original Series as Nurse Chapel. Did she successfully fool everyone at NBC, though? It depends on who you ask. In an old issue of Star Trek Monthly, Barrett proudly claimed, “For three years, NBC never knew it was the same person.” However, according to Inside Star Trek: The Real Story, NBC Vice President Herb Schlosser asked studio exec Herb Solow about who the Chapel actor was; when he found out it was Barrett, he correctly sussed out that she was likely having an affair with someone important.

Speaking of affairs, Barrett’s stunt severely angered Lucille Ball, whose Desilu studio produced Star Trek: The Original Series. After her own marriage fell apart due to her husband’s philandering, she began demanding that everyone who worked with her act upright and moral at all times. When she found out that married Gene Roddenberry had snuck his mistress back into Trek under a different name (Majel Leigh Hudec, her real name), she wanted to fire the two of them. Basically, she hated their moral impropriety as well as Roddenberry’s naked nepotism. Fortunately, Solow was able to talk her out of it, which allowed Roddenberry to change sci-fi forever.

As for Majel Barrett, she certainly left her mark on Star Trek. She married Roddenberry, appeared extensively in The Original Series, and then popped up in multiple TOS movies and TV spinoffs like The Animated Series, The Next Generation, and Deep Space Nine. The franchise effectively changed her life for the better, and her appearances certainly made Trek a deeper and more delightful universe. None of this would have happened, though, if she hadn’t dyed her hair blonde one day and set out to trick the man she would later marry!

Vanderpump Rules alum Tom Sandoval filed for a restraining order against his ex-girlfriend Victoria Lee Robinson and her father amid allegations of domestic violence, outlining a series of claims in his legal docs.

Us Weekly obtained the filing in which Sandoval accused Victoria, 33, and her dad, J. Will Robinson, of subjecting him to “verbal and physical abuse” during a heated incident on June 3. (TMZ first reported the news on June 25, 2026.)

Per Sandoval, he initially had a “verbal disagreement” over Victoria filming him without permission, allegedly inciting his father to become aggressive and forcing the reality star to hide. Sandoval said he later suffered blurred vision when Victoria allegedly attacked him at their home. (Victoria was arrested following a 911 call and later released on bond.)

A source exclusively told Us that Tom now wants Victoria and Will to move out of his home, where they’ve all lived together for the past several months.

Related: Tom Sandoval and Girlfriend Victoria Lee Robinson’s Relationship Timeline

Tom Sandoval‘s romance with Victoria Lee Robinson has not been immune to its fair share of public scandals. The couple confirmed their relationship in February 2024, nearly a year after Sandoval became infamous for cheating on now-ex-girlfriend Ariana Madix with their Vanderpump Rules costar Rachel “Raquel” Leviss. Sandoval used the controversy to reflect on his […]

“They are broken up,” the insider revealed to Us. “Tom has endured this abuse for many months. For the most part, Tom has been supporting Victoria and her dad as Tom has been paying the rent and utilities. Victoria’s dad has been living in the house for free. He put up with far too much for too long.”

Us has reached out to representatives for both sides for comment.

Sandoval and Victoria went public as a couple in 2024, following his highly-publicized cheating scandal with Vanderpump Rules costar Rachel “Raquel” Leviss that ended his nine-year relationship with Ariana Madix.

Keep scrolling for more about Sandoval’s accusations below:

Tom Sandoval Said He Was the Victim of Repeated Abuse By Will Robinson

In his petition for a domestic violence restraining order, Sandoval alleged that he’d been abused “several times in 2026” by Victoria’s father, Will. Victoria was a witness to this abuse, according to Sandoval.

Sandoval recalled that Will “grabbed me [and] shoved me” and subjected him to a “verbal assault” on May 14 and May 15, 2026. His petition specified that Will is allegedly in possession of multiple weapons, including a club and a knife.

The reality star specifically asked a court to block Will from further abusing him by ordering both Robinsons to stay at least 100 yards away from Sandoval’s home, workplace and car. He additionally asked a judge to force Will to move out of their shared home.

“My name is on the lease,” Sandoval insisted. “I pay for some or all of the rent or mortgage.”

He requested the court to compel Will to enter a 52-week batterer intervention program to learn about “accountability, abuse effects and gender roles.”

Tom Sandoval Submitted a Personal Impact Statement to the Court

Sandoval wrote extensively about his allegations in a declaration to the court, where he outlined why a domestic violence restraining order was necessary.

“I am seeking a restraining order against [Will] based on the verbal and physical abuse he has perpetrated against me, the most recent incident being on June 3, wherein he grabbed me and restrained me, chased me into the bedroom and punched a 12-inch hole in my spare bedroom door where I was barricading myself,” Sandoval wrote in his impact statement. “I am afraid of [Will] and his daughter and request the Court’s protection.”

He described his version of events from June 3 in tremendous detail, revealing that he noticed Will was “visibly intoxicated” when he and Victoria returned home at around 2 a.m.

“He had a beer in front of him and was pouring himself shots of whiskey. His speech was slurred and his posture was unsteady,” Sandoval wrote. “When [Will] is intoxicated – which is daily – his behavior becomes aggressive, unpredictable and volatile. I am also aware that he has access to a club and a knife, which significantly heightens my concern for my safety given his frequent intoxication and the risk that he could use these weapons against me.”

Sandoval recalled having an argument with Victoria over whether she was secretly recording him. In the midst of this discussion, Sandoval alleges that Will physically accosted him.

“He grabbed my arms and shoulders and wrapped his arms around me. Feeling trapped and violated, I pushed him away from me in order to protect myself and create distance, which caused him to fall,” Sandoval claimed. “[Will] was the first person to put his hands on me. At no point did I pursue [Will]. After he grabbed me, I retreated into the residence and locked myself in the spare bedroom to remove myself from the confrontation. While I was barricaded inside the spare room, [Will] followed me, threatened me and punched a large hole approximately 12 x 12 inches in the spare bedroom door, where I had taken shelter.”

During this tense altercation, Will allegedly “put his face in the hole in the door and smiled telling me he will ‘f***’ me up, ‘destroy’ me and called me a ‘motherf***er.’” Sandoval insisted that he called the police at this point.

Tom Sandoval Accused Victoria Lee Robinson of Escalating the Physical Abuse

While the drama between Sandoval and Will was unfolding, the Traitors star alleges that Victoria “entered the spare bedroom and hit my face and temple area towards my hairline.”

“The impact of the blow was so forceful that it caused my vision to blur,” he wrote. “I sustained a bruise near my temple and eyebrow ridge and bled from my ear and neck as a result of Ms. Robinson striking me that night. The pain in my mouth persisted for two weeks, which prompted me to visit the ER to be evaluated. Even after emergency medical evaluation ruled out a fracture, I continued to experience significant pain and a restricted ability to open my mouth.”

Sandoval said that he experienced significant pain for weeks after the alleged physical abuse.

“More than two weeks later, I am still unable to fully open my jaw, which has affected my ability to eat and has required me to seek further medical evaluation,” he claimed.

After the alleged physical abuse occurred, Sandoval accused Victoria of recording him again, at which time she “changed her demeanor and tone, suggesting that she was the one who was being violated.”

“Ms. Robinson routinely manipulates and gaslights me by recording our interactions and saying false things in order to manufacture evidence in her favor, just as she did on June 3,” he argued.

Sandoval specified that he stayed in his spare bedroom until police arrived.

“Ms. Robinson was arrested when it became clear that she had attacked me. As I saw her being arrested, in the heat of the moment, I asked the police officers the process by which she could be bailed out,” he claimed. “I even foolishly accepted Ms. Robinson’s phone call from jail and lent her mother financial assistance for the bail. In hindsight, I deeply regret that decision.”

Tom Sandoval Asked a Court to Force the Robinsons to Move out of His Home

In the aftermath of the incident, Sandoval said that he checked into a hotel. He has continued to live in hotels in Los Angeles, Atlanta, Las Vegas, London and Ontario since the June 3 incident.

Sandoval now wants a judge to force the Robinsons to leave his Los Angeles home.

“I genuinely fear returning to the [home] while [Victoria] and her father remain there,” he wrote.

Tom Sandoval Described Previous Confrontations With the Robinsons

Sandoval offered context for the June 3 incident by referencing alleged past issues with Victoria and Will. He accused Victoria of throwing “a full Gatorade bottle” at him during a verbal dispute on April 3, 2026.

On May 14, 2026, he claimed that he went to a hotel when Victoria “cornered and blocked me in the [residence] and threatened to attack me.” The dispute allegedly started during a trip to Nashville to visit Victoria’s ill relative, per Sandoval.

“During the trip, [Victoria] became jealous because I took a photograph with a fan. Respondent instigated a verbal fight with me while she was intoxicated, causing me to lock myself in the bathroom,” he wrote. “[Victoria] ultimately went downstairs for a cigarette, during which I moved her belongings to Mr. Robinson’s room next door to give us some space. When she returned, she lost her temper again and started screaming and pounding at my hotel door, which I was not willing to open. Hotel security intervened during this incident.”

The Bravo star said he returned to the home on May 15, 2026, to retrieve personal belongings, only for Victoria to allegedly “attack me and hit me in the face and ear.”

“She then wrapped her arms around me and held on to me,” he alleged. “I was trapped in her arms and unable to free myself. She called to [Will], who came running toward me, grabbed me and shoved me out in the hall and out the front door stating, ‘You need to get the f*** out of here right now, you are not welcome here.’”

Sandoval recalled that Victoria’s behavior towards him allegedly became “more hostile, confrontational, and physically aggressive toward,” with Will frequently getting involved in their disputes.

“[Will] accepted her accusations about me without hearing my side, and directed his anger toward me,” per Sandoval. “On one occasion, after Ms. Robinson made false accusations against me, [Will] forcefully grabbed me and shoved me out of my own residence.”

Tom Sandoval Accused Victoria Lee Robinson of Frequent Verbal Abuse

Sandoval documented numerous instances of alleged verbal abuse throughout the relationship.

“[Victoria] repeatedly insulted and demeaned me throughout our relationship. She called me a ‘f***ing loser,’ told me, ‘I can get so much better,’ said that, ‘The only reason people like you is because of me,’ and frequently called me an ‘idiot’ and ‘moron,’” he wrote. “She also told me that I did not have a brain and that I was not a man. Respondent repeatedly undermined my longstanding friendships by attacking the credibility of people close to me, creating conflict and mistrust in relationships that had been important to me for years.”

He continued, “[Victoria] repeatedly created conflict within my friendships by crossing boundaries with my male friends and acquaintances, then accusing them of ‘hitting on’ her and insisting I could not trust them. This pattern occurred repeatedly, including with two close friends who were also coworkers and with a fellow Bravo personality during BravoCon 2025. After I caught Respondent being intimate with another man in December 2024, she falsely accused me of infidelity on Instagram, damaging my personal and professional reputation.”

Tom Sandoval Documented Will Robinson’s Alleged Alcohol Use

In his petition, Sandoval alleged that he “personally observe[d Will] consume alcohol every day.”

“[Will] keeps a separate refrigerator in his bedroom that is consistently stocked almost exclusively with beer,” he further claimed. “I have observed [Will] regularly consume copious [amounts] of liquor, which causes him to become hostile, unpredictable and aggressive toward me, especially during conflicts involving Ms. Robinson.”

Tom Sandoval Accused Victoria Lee Robinson of Using a GPS Tracker on His Car

Sandoval alleged that Victoria used a GPS tracker on his vehicle “after the June incident.”

“I took the vehicle to the auto shop. [Victoria] tracked the vehicle through a GPS tracker and retrieved it from the shop without notifying me,” he alleged. “I have regained possession of this vehicle, but I am concerned that [Victoria] may try to take it again without consulting me. I do not have any other vehicles that I can use.”

Tom Sandoval Accused Victoria Lee Robinson of Tampering With His Devices

Sandoval relayed multiple incidents where he claimed Victoria allegedly tampered with his private devices, including a mobile phone and iPad.

“On a recent occasion, while attempting to change my iPhone passcode, the device
prompted me to confirm whether I wanted to modify the alternate Face ID,” he recalled. “I have never set up my iPhone to permit any individual other than myself to access it using facial recognition. Suspecting that [Victoria] had accessed my phone settings, I confronted [Victoria] who denied she had modified the settings. However, when I placed my locked phone in front of [Victoria’s] face, the phone unlocked, even as [she] tried to distort her face and close her eyes to avoid the facial recognition. [Victoria’s] ability to unlock my phone would have given her access to my private text messages, emails and other applications and the ability to delete and restore data.”

Related: Tom Sandoval’s Girlfriend Victoria Addresses His Lawsuit Against Ariana

Tom Sandoval’s girlfriend Victoria Lee Robinson explained why they both deleted their social media accounts amid the reality star’s lawsuit against ex Ariana Madix. “We both deactivated our Instagrams once he found out about what the filing really meant,” Robinson, 32, wrote via Instagram comments, which she then screenshotted and shared to her Story. “We […]

Advertisement

He also accused Victoria of tampering with his social media.

“To make matters worse, around the same time, I noticed that my manager’s contact email and my Cameo link had been removed from my Instagram account, certain photographs had been archived, and an Instagram story commemorating the third anniversary of a close friend’s death had been deleted shortly after it was posted,” he alleged. “As I investigated, I discovered that my password had been changed, my recovery phone number had been replaced with a phone number associated with [her], and another device, consistent with the description and location of [her] phone, remained logged into my account.”

Tom Sandoval Expressed Fear of the Alleged Abuse Continuing

As he summed up his request for domestic violence protection, Sandoval shared his fear that the alleged abuse would continue unless the court intervened.

“My fear of Respondent is based on the escalating pattern of his conduct toward me over the past several months, my repeated efforts to avoid confrontation, the violence that I experienced on June 3 and my inability to safely return to my own home while [Will] remains there with Ms. Robinson as I continue to pay 100 percent of the utilities and the rent,” he claimed. “I believe that the abuse will continue unless the Court intervenes.”

Tom Sandoval Submitted Photos of the Injuries He Allegedly Endured

In addition to his court declaration, Sandoval included numerous photos allegedly showing his injuries as evidence. These images appear to show small wounds and bruising on Sandoval’s neck and inner ear.

Sandoval also submitted a photo of the hole that Will allegedly punched in his bedroom door.

Tom Sandoval Asked a Court to Grant Him Temporary Use of His Merchandise Collection

Among the key requests in the domestic violence restraining order petition involved Sandoval asking for temporary control of his merchandise collection.

The star specifically asked that he be granted temporary use of his “007 Limited Edition Golden gun (prop), megalodon tea, ninja sword guitars and trumpet.” He also asked for access to his 2024 Mercedes Benz GLE vehicle.

Thank You!

You have successfully subscribed.

“The situation has been especially difficult as the majority of my personal belongings remain at the [residence], including essential equipment I need for work as well as irreplaceable, limited edition items of significant personal value, which Ms. Robinson has threatened to take or dispose of,” he alleged. “I do not feel safe returning to the [residence] while [Victoria] and Ms. Robinson continue to remain there.”

Sandoval said he made three separate attempts to retrieve his belongings since June 3, though “each attempt resulted in intimidation, threats or interference by [Victoria] and her father.”

If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, please call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1-800-799-7233 for confidential support.

A$AP Rocky is catching major heat from fans after making a comment many are interpreting as shady to his partner, Rihanna.

The power couple has been praised as the embodiment of a fairytale love story, having been blessed with years of friendship and three gorgeous children.

However, fans are beginning to suspect a crack in the relationship, citing a recent viral moment as evidence.

The Arizona stop of Rocky’s “Don’t Be Dumb” Tour came with drama when the rapper complimented female crowd members with a suggestive remark.

While performing at Phoenix’s Mortgage Matchup Center with a speakerphone in hand, the “Praise The Lord” rapper was heard saying with a smile, “Thank God y’all didn’t know me when I was single because I would’ve fu-k-d the sh-t out you if you was pretty.”

The moment was captured by a fan and posted on X with the caption, “Asap, I just know you be stressing my girl Rihanna out.”

It is unclear if Rihanna was in attendance during the performance, as she has attended a couple of shows since the tour began.

Fans Heavily Bash A$AP Rocky, Question Relationship Status

Rocky’s comment wasn’t taken lightly by the Rihanna Navy, who took to social media to bash the rapper.

“It’s just objectifying the women… not to mention the disrespect to Rihanna,” one fan observed while another noted, “That’s too much for a married man to say.”

The backlash rolled in with one user describing the comment as “so bizarre,” while another wrote, “A$AP really out here flirting like he’s single while Rihanna’s raising his kids at home. Loyalty expired the second the lights hit.”

One commenter went as far as advising the “Diamonds” singer to leave the relationship because Rocky is “constantly disrespecting her.”

A similar comment read, “Saying this when you have three children with the woman you supposedly love is just insane.”

Drama At The Met Gala Involving Mystery Woman

It seems the “disrespect” fans are referring to is a viral moment at the 2026 Met Gala, where Rocky was seen chatting with a woman.

As reported by JustJared, while on the red carpet, the rapper, whose real name is Rakim Athelston Mayers, was seen chatting with a woman in a corner while Rihanna waited for him. She was later identified as Italian fashion designer Giovanna Battaglia Engelbert.

More conspiracy theories about trouble in paradise surfaced when another viral video showed Rihanna and Rocky after the event, appearing to have a tense moment in their vehicle.

Although neither party addressed the speculation, sources debunked talk of a romance between Rocky and Engelbert, saying he has “a lot of respect” for the mother of his kids.

The Rapper Praised Rihanna As ‘The One’

Regardless of the controversial moments that cast a shadow on their relationship, A$AP Rocky has always stood firm in his devotion to Rihanna.

Such was the case during an interview when he opened up about the moment he knew the “Umbrella” songstress was his soulmate.

“I knew from when we were younger. We both did, I think. So it was only right when we got older. We just kind of reconnected,” he revealed, per The Blast.

Speaking about the moment Rihanna fell in love with him, he recalled that it happened while shooting the music video for his hit 2012 song, “Fashion Killa.”

However, it wouldn’t be until eight years later that they would go public with their romance. In the years that followed, they welcomed three kids: sons RZA and Riot and daughter Rocki.

How Rihanna And A$AP Rocky Keep The Spark Alive

With children added to the mix, the lovebirds have had to put in more effort to keep their relationship spicy and exciting.

As reported by The Blast, the “Jukebox Joint” rapper dished on the secret to their romance, saying they find time to always remain best pals.

“You got to spice it up. You got to still date. You got to. still be friends. We roll dice. We play cards. Like, you know what I’m saying?” Rocky revealed.

He continued, gushing about how he loves Rihanna “to death,” adding, “We got to keep the funk going cause if not, what we doing then?”