Over in Emira and Gia’s dressing room, Liam sat on a couch with Gia’s dog, Bella, as Gia filmed TikTok videos ahead of the big day.
Emira, who did her own makeup for the reunion, finalized her glam, put in eyedrops, and was ready to get started, telling Bravo Insider she was feeling a mix of nerves and excitement.
Riley, who debuted, a gorgeous red hair transformation for the reunion, shared that she was “nervous” but also feeling “chill” ahead of the taping. “With the reunion, you really need to talk about the deep stuff,” she explained.
Georgia and Rowan were all smiles in their shared dressing room before filming started. Rowan admitted that she previously thought the taping would live in front of a “300 person” audience. Seemingly relieved that wasn’t the case, she declared, “I’m excited!”
The Next Gen NYC cast reveals the reunion advice they received from Bravolebs including Carl Radke, Tom Schwartz, and more
As she sat in the glam chair, Ava revealed to Bravo Insider that Carl Radke gave her “wise” advice ahead of the taping. “Carl from Summer House told me that I should be taking notes while watching the season, so I did just that.”
Shai noted that The Valley‘s Tom Schwartz gave him “some good advice” when the two met in Los Angeles: “[Reunions are] tough but it’s worth doing and you get to bond a little bit with everyone.”
Meanwhile, Southern Hospitality‘s Michols Peña showed his support for Georgia before she went to her first reunion. “He was kind of hyping me up,” she shared. “We were texting last night, he was like, ‘You got this.'”
Ariana got a pep talk from mom Kim Zolciak. “I was just on the phone with her, I started to cry,” Ariana shared backstage. “She gave me great advice and just reminded me that I am that bitch even if I make some mistakes and am not the best version of myself.”
Teresa Giudice’s advice for daughter Gia: “Just be confident, be yourself. Don’t think about anything too much and just be you.” Gia noted of her mom, “I think she’s the queen of that.”
Kandi Burruss also had some words of wisdom for daughter Riley. “My mom just wanted me to be confident,” Riley shared, adding that Kandi told her, “Don’t get into your shell and…don’t try to stir up unnecessary drama.”
Brooks had a three-way call with mom Meredith Marks and her The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City castmate Mary Cosby. “They’re just the most supportive people,” Brooks said. “My mom is just like, ‘You need to be yourself, be authentic, be you. Mary hypes you up so much… She’s like, ‘You’re strong. Let me hear you say it.’ She’s just such an incredible woman.”
Emira also got advice from Meredith “a really long time ago,” with the RHOSLC cast member issuing a warning: “Brace yourself.”
The Next Gen NYC cast’s unaired banter with Andy Cohen before the reunion
With a coffee in hand, Andy walked onto the set just before 10:00 a.m., and was joined by the cast nearly 10 minutes later.
As Liam was the first to walk onto set, Andy commented, “Early bird gets the worm,” to which Liam replied, “I like to be on time.” As they waited for the next cast member’s arrival, the two discussed Liam’s upbringing in New York.
Charlie was the next to take his seat, asking Andy if he had watched the show. With a laugh, Andy replied, “Of course I watched the show.”
When Shai walked out, he noted the set looked great, joking the cast could need the full bar setup featured in the background. Meanwhile, as Gia took her seat, Andy noted he had texted Teresa the day before.
As the full cast was seated and cameras were ready to roll, some of the cast members expressed how they were feeling. “We’re all so nervous, it’s dead silent,” Ariana declared, while Brooks admitted he was “stressed out.” Andy offered words of encouragement, telling the group, “In about 10 minutes, none of you are gonna be nervous.”
What happened during filming breaks at the Next Gen NYC reunion?
During filming breaks at the Next Gen NYC reunion, the cast took their official reunion looks photos, filmed social media content, and called their loved ones on FaceTime.
As Georgia took her reunion portrait, showing off her Iseder outfit and Gucci shoes, she was thrilled with the photos. Looking at the monitor, she happily declared, “Wait that’s tea.” She then went on to film content with Bravo’s social team. Liam looked on as Emira took photos in her Maria Lucia Hohan dress, playfully asking the content creator, “Can you teach me how to pose?”
During one break, Andy asked Ariana, Brooks, Gia, and Riley to take a photo with him. After snapping the selfie, Gia asked the WWHL host, “Can you send it to our moms?”
Unaired moments from the Next Gen NYC reunion
Some of the most iconic moments that aired during the reunion had even more to the story. While viewers saw Andy FaceTime Teresa from Gia’s phone, bits from the call that weren’t shown included Andy commenting on how gorgeous Teresa looked without makeup and Teresa telling Gia that all of her castmates “looked beautiful.”
The back-and-forth between Charlie and Georgia was certainly intense throughout the reunion, but there was a brief moment of levity that didn’t make it to air. As the two attempted to sort out their issues, Andy interrupted the argument, explaining, “We need to fix Shai’s mic.” Shai joked, “I unplugged it on purpose.”
Viewers got to see Rowan praise her mom Brooke Shields, but what wasn’t shown was Rowan sharing her favorite movie her mom had starred in: Chalet Girl. Shocked that almost no one on the cast had seen it, she urged, “You all have to watch it.”
Also likely now on the cast’s to-watch list: The Rocky Horror Picture Show. After much conversation around the film and musical during Season 2, when Andy asked who had actually seen it, only Liam raised his hand.
