Jill Zarin has been fired from an upcoming E! reunion series after backlash over her rant criticizing Bad Bunny's Super Bowl Halftime Show.
Blink49 Studios, the production behind The Golden Life, announced her removal in a statement shared with TMZ.
“In light of recent public comments made by Jill Zarin, Blink49 Studios has decided not to move forward with her involvement in The Golden Life,” read the statement. “We remain committed to delivering the series in line with our company standards and values."
A source close to the situation also told the outlet that the cast had been warned not to say or do anything controversial and that while the women were initially excited about the show, Zarin's comments dampened the mood even though they understood why she was let go.
Zarin, an original member of the cast of Real Housewives of New York City, shared and later deleted a lengthy rant about Bad Bunny’s halftime performance on her Instagram account. The video was eventually reshared on social media platforms like X (formerly Twitter).
“It was the worst halftime show ever,” said the 62-year-old in the video linked above. “It's 250 years that we're celebrating right now in the United States, and I just don't think it was appropriate to have it in Spanish.”
“Quite frankly, I didn't need to see him grabbing his, you know, G area,” she went on. “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. Is he so insecure?”
Zarin continued, “I don't speak Spanish. I would have liked to have known the words he was saying. To me, it looked like a political statement because there were literally no white people in the entire thing. I think it was a political statement and I'm not taking a side one way or the other. I think it was an ICE thing and I just think that the NFL sold out and it's very sad.”
The RHONY alum also came after Lady Gaga, the white representation Zarin evidently wanted, who was brought out as a surprise guest to sing a salsa rendition of her hit “Die With a Smile” as a couple were married mid-performance.
“Lady Gaga got a facelift,” she claimed. “I didn't recognize her. I literally had to Google her face to see who it was because we all couldn't agree who it was. So that was kind of fun in the middle of halftime. At least it gave me something to do because it was so hard to watch.”
While Zarin reportedly had a facelift in 2024, there has been no credible report that Gaga has undergone any cosmetic procedures.
Tennessee representative Andy Ogles, a staunch supporter of the Trump administration, called for an investigation into the Puerto Rican’s “smut” halftime performance, saying children “were forced” to watch “explicit displays of gay sexual acts, women gyrating provocatively, and Bad Bunny shamelessly grabbing his crotch while dry-humping the air.” You can read more about that here.