Sammi “Sweetheart” Giancola returned to Jersey Shore for the Family Vacation’s newest season, surprising many of her OG castmates from the MTV show.
It’s been 11 years since Sammi appeared on a JS show, as she rose to fame on the original series before it ended in 2012.
Based on her comments, it took one of her castmates to talk her into returning to Jersey Shore for the spinoff, Family Vacation.
The latest season is the first time that Sammi appears “under the same roof” as Deena Cortese and Angelina Pivarnick, as she’s been around castmates Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi and Jennifer “JWoww” Farley before.
It also brings about an interesting dynamic, as Sammi’s ex-boyfriend, Ronnie Ortiz-Magro, returns to the show years after their Jersey Shore relationship drama.
However, Sammi brought boyfriend Justin May along for the filming, which she spoke about in recent interview comments regarding her boyfriend and ex.
Sammi talks about filming Family Vacation with her ex and current boyfriend
Leave it to Sammi Sweetheart to shake things up with her epic return to reality TV. In the trailer that teased the latest season of Jersey Shore: Family Vacation, multiple castmates said they were “shook” by Sammi’s return. Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino summed up everyone’s reactions as “shooketh.”
Sammi’s ex-boyfriend Ronnie was not among those appearing in the confessionals about her return. However, he appeared in the teaser trailers, highlighting his return to the show after stepping away to work on his mental health.
There were never any scenes showing Sammi with Ronnie in the trailers. However, the fact the exes were reuniting for the show brought fans’ anticipation that they’d chat to confront previous drama between them.
In a sit-down interview with E! News, Sammi was asked about being back on the show with her ex-boyfriend years after their Jersey Shore relationship drama.
“He’s just a guy I dated in my 20s,” Sammi said about Ronnie, adding, “I’ve dated multiple people after [him]. Like I’ve lived life for a long time. I’m 36 now.”
In another interview, Sammi said Ronnie is “like a co-worker” with whom she films a reality TV show. Additionally, she said taking a lot of time away to get a break from reality TV and become more mature has helped with her return.
After splitting from Ronnie in 2016, Sammi began dating Christian Biscardi from 2017 until 2021. The couple got engaged in 2020. However, things ended in 2021, and she began dating New Jersey native Justin May later that same year.
In August 2022, Monsters and Critics reported about Sammi and Justin’s first anniversary. As of August 2023, they’ve been dating for two years.
During her chat with E! News, Sammi gushed over her current boyfriend, mentioning his support was also great to have in returning to reality TV.
“It was nice to bring my current boyfriend, who I adore and just love because he’s very supporting of me,” she said.
Sammi reveals which Jersey Shore castmate got her to return
Several of Sammi’s castmates tried to get her back on Jersey Shore for a long time. However, Sammi shared that Angelina got her to return thanks to a message she sent her way.
“Angelina DM’d me last November and was like, ‘Would you ever come back?’ and I was like, ‘You know what? Why not,'” Sammi shared, adding, “I’m in a good place right now. Why not come back?”
Based on comments from Snooki, they’d been trying to get Sammi to return to the show for “like 10 years” during her lengthy hiatus from Jersey Shore.
Angelina said she wasn’t ready to fully believe Sammi was really returning until they were driving to Pennsylvania to surprise castmates during filming.
The Situation and castmate Vinny Guadagnino claimed they’re rarely shocked during Jersey Shore, but Sammi’s return did it, with members of production even unaware she was coming back.
It definitely made for some epic and emotional reactions from Sammi’s castmates as they officially realized she was back!
Jersey Shore: Family Vacation airs Thursdays at 8/7c on MTV.