Credit: Seth Browarnik/startraksphoto
Todd Nepola is taking Bravo and NBCUniversal to court.
Just under two months after accusing the media giants of “lies, bullying, and behind-the-scenes extortion tactics” and warning of an impending case against them on Instagram, Todd, 52, who claimed to be worth $100 million, filed a defamation lawsuit, alleging that they lied about his finances for the sake of a good storyline for his former wife, Alexia Nepola, 58, on the sixth and seventh seasons of The Real Housewives of Miami.
According to court documents obtained by TMZ on October 7, Todd said that while he’d never bounced a check, missed a payment, or struggled financially, multiple episodes of RHOM portrayed him as someone who was broke and facing hardships in business to make the show more “juicy.”
Throughout the past couple of seasons, a number of claims have been made against Todd and his finances, with Adriana de Moura, 59, being accused of spreading falsities.
In addition to accusing Bravo and NBCUniversal of airing the untruths on their series, Todd’s lawyers have also suggested that the companies did so knowingly — and as Todd purchased more than $115 million in real estate.
A second report shared by All About the Real Housewives noted that Purveyors of Pop Productions, which produces RHOM, was also named in the lawsuit, and that Todd was seeking $10 million for defamation and another $1 million for unauthorized use of his name and likeness.
“Mr. Nepola wanted to be Alexia’s husband, not her storyline,” the complaint stated. “Enough is enough.”
Todd also wants to block Bravo and NBCUniversal from continuing to cash in on the lies they’ve aired about him in future re-airings.
In the Instagram message he shared back in August, Todd looked back at the claims Adriana made against him on the show, which she’s since apologized for, describing the storyline as a “real blow.”
“I couldn’t believe people would make these kinds of lies up. I was very mad at her for lying on TV … and I was madder at Alexia for getting me involved in this mess. But I was the most mad at producers, who knew the story wasn’t true,” he explained, noting that he had “just bought a $24 million shopping center” at the time the allegations were made.
“I realized I couldn’t live in this world anymore, and the woman I loved couldn’t live without it. So I had to make a decision to leave,” he stated.
He then said he was taking Bravo and NBCUniversal’s “a**es to court.”
“You’re gonna have a courtroom to perform in, and you’re not going to have to convince the public you’re gonna have to convince a real judge and a real jury if you had the right to use me on TV and lie about me on TV when you knew it was a lie,” he declared. “[And] I’m gonna win a lot of money, and when I do, I’m gonna give it to groups that work with people that are bullied, cyberbullied, bullied in person, attacked online by people like you who hide in these rooms and destroy lives.”
The Real Housewives of Miami season seven airs Thursdays at 9/8c on Bravo.