Michols Peña is getting the hang of reality TV, one episode at a time. Arguably the breakout star from the latest season of Bravo's Southern Charm spinoff Southern Hospitality, he's shared a lot with views in just a few short episodes. From managing his responsibilities working at Leva Bonaparte's Republic Garden & Lounge, to opening up about his sexuality and dating life in Charleston, North Carolina, he has more than proved he is up for the challenge of reality TV (all while being the perfect amount of messy that the genre demands).
As the back-half of the season continues to air on Bravo, Parade caught up with Peña to break down his experience on reality TV so far, the feedback he's received from his most vulnerable moments on the series and what he's learned the most from his time on reality TV.
"It's kind of like a fast-paced form of therapy if that makes sense," he explained. Watching himself back for the first time, Peña has learned a lot about himself. "It's kind of funny because in a way, it doesn't feel like you're watching yourself. It feels like you're just watching random people on TV...but then also in a way, you sometimes find yourself critiquing yourself."
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Unlike The Real Housewives, a show like SoHo is established around an already existing work environment, in this case Republic. Yes, we are getting delicious reality TV, but the cast members are still working their "real" jobs, and in the demanding world of nightlife nonetheless.
Michols finds himself in a unique position in particular: he's Assistant General Manager of Republic, while also joining as one of the youngest amongst the staff. It's a tricky balance, managing his responsibilities in and out of Republic amongst this group, but he handles it well.
"I'm here to work," he explained. "I'm managing everybody, I'm the youngest one. I have to be on my sh-t. But then, outside of work, messy Michols is coming to play like ... I don't care. I'm saying whatever the f-ck I want and I'm doing whatever I want." He added, "It's definitely a different type of work-life balance."
Southern Hospitality remains one of the most diverse entries on Bravo, with Michols joining as an openly gay cast member in the show. His dynamic with TJ Dinch was explored early on in the season, as lines blurred in their friendship right before filming began. In a particularly powerful moment, Michols opened up to TJ about how he felt about him in the past, while also revealing his own experience with his sexuality.
"Living in this area that's predominantly white, being a person of color, and also with my family being so pretentious, it's very hard to navigate some situations, because sometimes there would be an inkling in the back of my head like, 'Oh wait, what would my parents think about this?"
Stephanie Diani/Bravo
Related: Stars Say 'Southern Hospitality' Finally Brings Diversity to Bravo in an 'Organic' Way (Exclusive)
He explained to us that he eventually had to decide that what his parents or anyone else thought about him living his life was something that he "had to" get over, to be his most authentic self in this process.
"I was like, if I'm going to do this, I'm going to be unapologetically me and I'm going to be authentic and just try to stay true to myself and find out who I am within the process," he shared. "That just gave me a lot of confidence to go ahead and have that conversation and share my story."
The response to the scene was overwhelmingly positive, with many fans praising the moment between the two gay men on Bravo, both opening up about their own respective experiences both coming out and navigating early adulthood. Peña heard directly from some fans as well, which helped confirm to him that this was the right decision.
"I had a lot of people reach out to me on social media, even like friends and lot of family that I never thought would come around," he revealed. "I was like, who knew it would have, like, taken to watch it from behind a camera to, you know, finally get some people to come around or like have a different point of view?"
He added, "Like I even had people reach out to me from like all over the US, somebody in Canada, and a trans woman from Charlotte reached out and was like, 'You made me feel so seen. Thank you for saying that.'"
"I didn't know how impactful that conversation could have been, but I'm glad that I got to, you know, share my story and it helps someone," he expressed.
Southern Hospitality airs on Thursdays on Bravo, with episodes streaming next day on Peacock.
Related: Stars Say 'Southern Hospitality' Finally Brings Diversity to Bravo in an 'Organic' Way (Exclusive)
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