Mike ‘The Situation’ on Sammi ‘Sweetheart’ Giancola’s ‘Jersey Shore’ Return
Q&A
The band is back together on Jersey Shore Family Vacation as Sammi “Sweetheart” Giancola returns to the franchise. Yes, the “sweetest b*tch you’ll ever meet” makes her return after 11 years in the back half of season 6. If that wasn’t enough, fellow OG cast member and Sammi’s ex Ronnie comes back after he stepped away from the show to deal with legal and personal issues.
Mike “The Situation” Sorrentino couldn’t be happier to have a truly full house, which also includes Paul “Pauly D” DelVeccho, Nicole “Snooki” Polizzi, Ronnie Ortiz-Magro, JWoww” Farley, Vinny Guadagnino, Deena Nicole Cortese and Angelina Pivarnick.
“This season is like no other,” Mike teases to TV Insider. “Sam is back. Angelina is unpredictable. I try to be the voice of reason. Sometimes it doesn’t work. The fans and viewers get to see how we navigate all that.” Here “Big Daddy SItch” further sets the table for what’s to come.
Before we get into Jersey Shore, I wanted to follow up on your recent announcement of an upcoming memoir “Reality Check: Making the Best of The Situation”. What can we expect from that?
Mike: This is a tell-all book. I think the fans, viewers, and readers are going to be pleasantly surprised. I think a lot of the book is going to be shocking. Most importantly I document in that book how I recovered from addiction. I believe that book is going to save some lives. I’m very grateful that my life story could quite possibly be someone’s survival guide. It is a rise, a tremendous fall, but a beautiful comeback story. What is most beautiful about it is that there is no testimony without a test. The reader is not going to be able to put this book down
Season 6 picks up as you and your wife Lauren welcome baby number 2 in Mia Bella. How has the latest addition changed the dynamic of the household?
Listen, two under two is not easy. I think everyone knows that. But to be honest with you it’s all I ever wanted was to be a family man. worked my ass off to have the family and stability I have right now. I take it very seriously. I think my biggest flex is being a sober dad. What the fans see on Jersey Shore: Family Vacation is a very evolved Mike “The Situation”. Now I know how to put on a good show for sure, but first and foremost, I’m a dad. I’m a husband. I’m sober eight years in December. I’m proud of the product I give to MTV and to the fans.
These episodes come around the explosive reunion involving Angelina. You had a lot of drama with her stemming from interactions between the two of you on social media. Some viewers also peg you as a catalyst for the beef between her and the girls.
Me being the voice of reason, I try to navigate these reality streets the best way I can. It’s not easy sometimes. I’m trying to be true to who I am. My intention is always to be a good friend. Sometimes with seven or eight other castmates, it’s not easy to do that balance. There is a very fine line.
Michael “The Situation” Sorrentino/X
Did you think Sam would ever come back? How do you feel she acclimated back into the group?
I did not. You see how shocked everyone was right off the back. I had an inclination that Ronnie was slowly coming back though. He wasn’t necessarily a surprise as I always have slight check-ins to see how he is doing. Sam on the other hand I always wanted to hear her story. I never understood why she didn’t want to come back for the reboot. You get to see everyone’s natural reaction when Sam enters.
Of course, the dynamic is going to change. This is the first time in history that the girls with Sam are all under one roof at one time in one place. There are going to be some growing pains. There are going to be some adjustments. In my opinion, everyone sort of fell in line because everyone knows each other so well like a brother and sister like the back of their hand. Ironically, it just works so well. Even though we haven’t seen Sam in a decade, it was like yesterday. It was cool for the fans to see it. I think it will be the biggest season yet.
The timing is just crazy happenstance Sam’s return came around with Ronnie.
Yes. It was a very unplanned thing. Ron for a few years now has been focusing on his mental health and slowly his trajectory was for him to come back to us. Nobody knew Sam would be coming back, so that’s where you start to see things fall into place in various ways. It’s a really cool thing to see.
One of the big things that will follow up in these episodes is how the roommates reacted to Angelina’s engagement. That caused a rift in the group. Do you think she was overreacting? Do you see both sides in hindsight?
I think anyone would be right to say they were shocked that she got engaged so quickly. It’s a natural reaction. We were all shocked. Angelina will be Angelina. She is a wild card, unpredictable. There are also patterns with her. The way she was about her wedding is the similar way she focused on this engagement. She flipped out. Very similar thing here when she got newly engaged, where she sort of decided to focus on what other people thought, looking for validation. I don’t choose to live my life that way. It’s what happens when you put big personalities on a show and see how people navigate things. I can see both sides of the coin. But also I know if you get newly engaged to someone after a couple of weeks there are some risks associated with that.
After doing this show for so long, has there ever come a point where you felt you needed to step away like others have?
Not in recent years. Maybe season 5 of Jersey Shore when I was in Italy. I contemplated taking a step back as that was a very tough time for me in my life. I wasn’t making the right decisions for myself at that time as in active addiction. You’re not getting good results when you are not putting yourself first or loving yourself. I eventually kept it moving and got sober. I love my job. I love what I do. I think everyone is very happy with it.
You’re in Jersey, Pennsylvania and even take a trip down to Orlando’s Margaritaville in these episodes. How much fun was that?
This is definitely one of our best yet. It has everything you want to see. There is fun, family, unpredictability, and drama of course. I don’t want to say drama like it’s a good thing, but it’s a fact of life. Every trip we do is super entertaining. This time around we were filming all over the place. Me, personally, I’m very sentimental. Not only do I love my job, I’ve been working with these guys for 15 years. I’m very mindful and in the moment and enjoy it all.
This season there is a big update with Angelina and her father. How emotional was it seeing her go through that journey?
Sometimes in life, we lose our way. Sometimes it’s things like that which can bring you back home and make you think about the big picture and family and love. That’s what makes this show so special. It was very real, raw. This season has it all. Eventually, we lose our way, but we always find a way to make our way back home. It’s really special.
Final question, how is the cornhole game?
My cornhole game is amazing. I’m a cornhole champion. That was really cool ESPN and MTV collaborated to make that happen last year. I definitely feel I brought a big light to that sport because this year I see a lot of other celebs doing it. We were the pioneer of that.
Jersey Shore: Family Vacation, August 3, 8/7c, MTV
Jersey Shore Family Vacation where to stream
