‘House of Villains’: Drita D’Avanzo Details That Win, How She Forgave Christine Quinn & More

Loyalty was the name of the game in House of Villains Season 3. Warning: There are spoilers ahead for House of Villains Season 3’s finale.

While most of the reality TV “villains” in the mansion would throw their banishment votes whichever way the majority of the house was leaning, Drita D’Avanzo was oftentimes the lone soldier, keeping her word to whoever had received it, even if it meant she voted alone — and with one less ally still in the house to come back to.

In the end, though, the gestures paid off. When the castaways came back, they overwhelmingly chose her to win above Kate Chastain, who’d played a smart game herself, and Christine Quinn, who earned the ire of D’Avanzo by putting her in the bottom three, despite promising not to. Even Tom Sandoval and Tyson Apostol, who’d never been aligned with her, agreed she should have the win.

It wasn’t an easy road to victory, though. After Christine threw then-bestie D’Avanzo into the bottom alongside Tiffany “New York” Pollard and Paul Abrahamian, bringing Kate to the final three with her instead, D’Avanzo had to fight for her place in the final vote and did just that.

To unpack everything that happened throughout the season and especially in the final stretch, TV Insider caught up with the former Mob Wives star!

I was hoping that you would walk away victorious.

Drita D’Avanzo: Thank you so much. Shockingly, I did. I mean, I didn’t see that coming.

So digging into it, were you surprised when no one sabotaged you in that final supervillain challenge?

No, I wasn’t surprised because they knew that I had loyalty to them and kept my word to them. So I wasn’t surprised. I think I would have probably been more surprised that they did, but it would have been fine. It’s a game.

Adam Rose / Peacock

You have said that you keeping your word and your outgoing votes wasn’t a strategy or game move. But is that really true, or did you think about it that way at all?

No, actually, it’s completely true, and what they didn’t realize was that was actually stressing me out because everyone I’m being loyal to is getting kicked out. So the name of the game here is make alliances. I’m making alliances with everyone that next week they flew out of the house. I’m like, “This is bad. This bad for me.” I’m not looking at it like, “Oh, I’m going to be [their vote later].” That’s a crazy thing to even think of. Once they were saying, “Oh, that could have been a strategy.” I’m like, “That’s insane. Why did you even think of that as being a strategy when I’m keeping my word, I got to go back in the house, and now all of you in the house hate me because I’m voting for them?” So that’s a stupid strategy.

In the house, it didn’t seem like you had any enemies. Was there anyone that you just really didn’t click with?

No, I actually — you don’t understand. I am the type person that gets along with everyone and anyone. I really can. I just, I’m that person. My mother used to be like, I could literally walk down the street, I knew [people]… I was friends with the bum. I was like, “Hey, what’s up, Jordy?” Like, I can talk to anyone and everyone and get along with people, as long as you don’t come at me… However you treat me is how I treat you. I’m really easy to get along with.

Were you surprised at all at how loyal Johnny Middlebrooks was to you? Because even in my exit interview with him, he was fiercely loyal, fiercely pro-Drita. 

I just love Johnny. It’s funny. I knew him the most from Love Island because I do love that show, but I feel like he is a very loyal type of person. He knew when I told him, “I would never vote against you,” and I said, “I don’t even need to hang out with you ever again. Just know my word is bond, and that’s it.” And it’s like, he knows. Some people just know things. He has very good, he’s intuitive, and he can read people, too. So I think that we just had that great bond with each other. I love that kid. I wish him well, and he really knew that I would never go against them. He even knew, when they voted him out, that he knew I kept my word.

Well, keeping your word like that, I mean, it’s kind of an anti-villain thing to do. So how did you feel when you got put on the spot to be like, “Well, how are you still a villain?”

You know what? I can understand the question. I understand where they’re coming from. But in my mind, I’m like, “How am I a villain? Just come over to me and start a fight with me. How am I a villain? Look when Christine turned on me, what happened.” Villain is a word that can be stretched in a lot of different directions on what a villain really is… On Mob Wives, I mangled people. I beat the sh** out of them. I put someone in the hospital. So really, if you’re not a violent person, you could be like, “Oh, she’s such a villain,” which is not true. I always used to beat up the bad guys growing up and protect people. So it’s tricky. It’s a tricky word. To me, I’m like, “I don’t want to be on a show called Villains. Yeah, I’m not a villain. I’m only sticking up for myself.” But again, villains are created, and Christine created a villain out of me because I turned very villainous. I was going to do anything in my power to make sure she lost because she hurt me.

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'House of Villains': Tom Sandoval & Tyson Apostol Talk Season 3 Highlights

Did you get any sense going into that lair that she was going to do that? Or did you just completely get blindsided?

No, I was beyond blindsided. Never. Because we had a moment, we’re crying, we’re hugging. I mean, that was her opportunity to keep it 100 and just tell me, “I can’t win if you’re there. I love you. We said we’re going to take you to the end with each other. We’re roommates.” If she said all that, I would have been like, “I get it.” I wouldn’t have been happy, but I get it. But she did me a big favor because I won not owing her anything. If she took me to the end, and if I ended up winning, it would have been because Christine took me to the end, so she did me a huge favor.

Are you guys OK now, or do you still have a grudge?

No, I don’t. I don’t hold grudges. I’m not…. If I don’t like you, I will never talk to you again, and you could disappear from my life. I’m fine with that. I just won’t even think of you. But Christine was, after, very emotional when the show ended. I ran into her at the hotel, and she was still crying about it. And I was like, “You know what?” Obviously, some people would be like, “Well, it’s because you won.” It’s a game, and when the game was over, and I saw her so upset, that’s not something you should carry with you. I’m a bigger softy than people think. Anyway, and I didn’t want her to be upset. It is a game, and what she did, truthfully, if you’re playing chess, by doing a checkmate on me, it’s what you’re supposed to do. She’s trying to win that money, too. So it was a smart move. It was a villainous move. And I’m not on the show called House of Wonderfuls.

Adam Rose / Peacock

When you walked in, and you were in the top three, and it was time for the vote, did you feel like you had it in the bag?

I don’t know. Because Kate was a phenomenal contender. So you don’t know. Again, when I watch a show, I’m like, “I didn’t even know some of these people were aligned with each other.” So I didn’t know. I didn’t know, would Tyson want to give me the vote when I wanted him out since day one?… I did think it would be me and Kate — closer, I thought. But you know what? Everyone’s loyalty came back and made me very happy. My loyalty given was, in return, given back to me. And there’s nothing better than that.

Well, you mentioned Tyson. Also, Tom and a couple other people voted for you. Was there anyone who actually surprised you that they went your way?

They did. I was surprised Tom and Tyson voted for me, and I loved them after that. I was like, “Wow, they voted for me and made me feel good.” What surprised me? The funny thing is, if you would have told me, I would have sworn New York would have voted for me. Now, we have a past. We did Scared Famous. That surprised me, not who voted for me, for her not to vote for me. It’s weird because the people I thought that was gonna vote for me, it was like the opposite.

As a viewer, I really wanted to try your food every time they’re talking about your dishes. I’m just wondering if you’re gonna make a recipe book now?

Now, I’m a massive cook and baker, by the way. You know I own the bakery, right? So I do both. And I should. I should do my little villainous cookbook. I do not play games when I cook. It’s a very serious thing. The funny thing is, when we’re watching the show, my daughter is like, “Everyone’s having a fight at the party. There’s all these alliances, and you’re showing me the island in the kitchen. Do you know how much I could cook in here? Do you know what I could do in this place?” She goes, “It’s hilarious.” She goes, “Actually, you’re so funny. Not even trying to be funny.”

Well, do you think that might have won people over, too? Because they say the way to anybody’s heart is through their stomach.

You know what? I needed some form of I had to bring my home with me because I’m living with strangers. Who does that? Do you do that? Does anyone? No. It’s not easy. I don’t think people understand that. And then when I’m in there, I’m like, “I need a home.” And it was, more or less for me. It was good for me mentally, to cook and feel like I’m back at home. I miss my kids. I miss my dog. I’m, again, a bigger softy than people realize. Seeing [daughter] Aleeya surprised me.

How did your daughter react when you brought home that bacon?

You know what? She said, “I knew you were gonna win.” She goes, “You kept saying, ‘I can’t win a show like this.'” She goes, “Mom, I just knew you would win… I just knew it. I can’t explain why… but why would anyone want to vote against you?” She’s like, “You’re so much… Mob Wives just shows you angry and people coming at you and bullying you… They don’t even know what a softy you are.”

If you hadn’t won, and if you could pick anyone, no matter when they went out, who would you have rooted for?

Of the last three, what I would have wanted was Christine — that’s before she screwed me over. But if you’re saying from the beginning, Christine, Kate, and Johnny would have been the three that would have been like for me, my favorites. I mean, Christine ended up screwing me over. But those beforehand, those three, I would have been like, “Oh, this is good,” and it would have made me happy whoever won…

Casey Durkin / Peacock

What would you have judged your vote on, friendship or their villainy? 

Kate, I would have probably voted for her to win because of everybody going against her, trying to come after her, and she had to hold her own. I took such a liking to Kate. I love Kate, very smart, and I think she’s also someone that’s judged wrongly. I see anything negative, I’m like, “Hell no, I like her. I think she keeps it real, too.”

I feel like there is this impression she’s a snow princess or something, that she doesn’t warm up. But I have a friend like that. It’s just RBF. I just wondered if that’s what it is?

Yeah, 100% right. I feel like people look at her, “She’s a b**ch, she’s cold,” or whatever. I feel like Kate is the type of person, as soon as she came, I watched her, I listened to her, I said, “Well, I love her.” And she’s tough, and she’s definitely smart. So the funny thing is, if everybody was really on point in that house, they should have wanted her and Tyson out of that. And Ashley [Mitchell], to me, was a threat only because she won The Challenge. Yeah, I don’t have to jump off cliffs and sh**.

Was there anybody else in the house that you feel like was misunderstood?

Oh, I feel like Tom is a lot more misunderstood than people realize. I mean, people probably would be mad I would say that, but the truth is, I do read people pretty well. I feel sorry because I feel like he’s always trying to redeem himself, and that sucks to be in that place. I had one conversation with him, and I was like, “F*** what everybody thinks, nobody’s perfect, and everybody is just judgmental,” and he’s not a bad guy. Even in the show, you don’t see him being a scheming [person]. He was very loyal to who he was supposed to be loyal to.

In that last challenge, you guys predicted that Kate would be excluded from the group chat. So is she part of the group chat?

No, she’s part of it. She probably don’t want to be.

Is anybody not?

No.

House of Villains, all united.

You know what? I think at the end of the day, everybody realized it’s a game. Tyson was just like the mastermind behind everything, but he also did say to me, he goes, “After reliving it and thinking it, you’re going to change the way people play this. I know why, because you really are.” I think Tyson just thought he had it in the bag.

Well, it might not have been an intentional strategy, but it did play out the way that it would have if it was a strategy.

It wasn’t. I could try to take the credit and probably lie, “Yeah, it was my strategy,” or whatever. But the truth is, it wasn’t.

When I talked to you last, you said you would never do reality TV again. Do you still stick to that after this is aired?

No, I would never do Mob Wives. With reality TV, I would only do it if it was fun. I could be fun, funny. Maybe cook for you, or I would like to make people laugh. I wouldn’t want to focus on being angry.

House of Villains, Peacock