At SUR, Lisa Vanderpump always goes all out for Pride. For the most recent Pride party, featured on Vanderpump Rules Season 12, Lisa put SUR-ver Venus Binkley in charge of the festivities for SUR’s annual event.
But before the music and dancing even began, Lisa admitted she had reservations about putting Venus in charge. It all started when she asked him if he’d distributed the fliers to advertise SUR’s pride party during Episode 11.
“I think me and all the girls are going to go out Friday night and we’re going to pass them all around West Hollywood,” Venus said.
“That’s a bit late, isn’t it?” asked Lisa. “Listen, this is all on you. If it goes wrong, I’m coming to you. Remember what I told you? This is your moment.”
Venus also admitted he’d been operating over the budget Lisa had set, so he was forced to pull from his own pocket. “My pride budget is $500. But, I spent $250 of my own,” he told producers.
He broke down the costs of throwing an “iconic” party: “I bought a big blow-up unicorn pool floatie, water guns for the boys, tons of streamers. So I spent $750 on pride—and a little bit of my dignity.”
Inside the Pride photoshoot at Lisa Vanderpump’s Villa Rosa home
Venus laid out his plans for hosting SUR’s epic Pride celebration during the Feb. 10 episode.
“The vision that I have is shirtless men. Giant rubber duckies,” he told producers. “I want people dancing. And I want people f—ked up.”
He later added, “Since we’re going to do a pool-party theme for gay pride at SUR, I need to make the most iconic gay pride flier ever.”
And that’s how he, Marcus Johnson, Chris Hahn, and Jason Cohen ended up at Lisa’s luxurious Villa Rosa mansion for a photo shoot. With Marcus as the photographer, Venus directed his models, Chris and Jason, into sexy poses around Lisa’s pool. The shirtless photos involved beach balls, and at one point, Chris and Jason’s bare buttocks, which prompted Lisa to question, “Is this really necessary?”
But Venus reassured Lisa, “I’m going to make sure these photos are iconic.”
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Venus Binkley explains why hosting SUR’s Pride party is so important
Hosting SUR’s pride event was of the utmost importance to Venus. “I have been waiting for this moment my whole life,” he explained to producers during the Feb. 10 episode. “I’ve always just tried to escape Texas to be here, and West Hollywood has been my safe space for the last five years… And so, pride to me is a representation of when you just stay true to who you are, that it will bring you everything you ever hoped for.”
Venus opened up to Lisa about his childhood struggles. “When I was younger, I always felt like I needed to run away. I was scared of everyone. Just because I was afraid of people finding out that I was gay,” he shared.
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“I grew up on a f—king farm, gay. And everyone tormented me for it, and I just felt trapped in a box of people trying to define me as someone I wasn’t,” he told producers.
“Once I did come out of the closet, and I felt so rejected by everyone around me, I ended up threatening to kill myself, and I got sent to a mental hospital,” Venus revealed to Lisa.
For Lisa, the revelation hit home, as her brother, Mark, committed suicide in 2018. “I’m sorry. I understand that feeling, and I don’t want anyone to feel that way,” Venus told Lisa after she opened up about her brother.
Venus also issued a message to his younger self: “To younger Venus, or anyone that can relate—I promise it will get better.”
ICYMI, check out the Vanderpump Rules Season 12 reunion seating chart.
