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Ciara Miller has broken her silence on Amanda Batula and West Wilson‘s relationship.
“It’s one thing to experience hurt behind closed doors,” Ciara, 30 said in an interview with Glamour published on Friday, April 17. “To experience it so publicly is like another layer, and then to have to see what you thought was your life still play out in season 10. It’s a major mindf***.”
Ciara alluded to having intuition about the situation, something her longtime friend and Summer House star Mia Calabrese teased on Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen earlier this week.
“Just know when something’s weird in your gut, there’s a reason,” Ciara said. “What’s done in the dark always comes to light. And sometimes you really don’t even have to do anything except sit back and let the universe handle it all.”
Amanda, 34, and West, 31 — Ciara’s ex — confirmed that their friendship turned romantic in a joint Instagram statement on March 31.
“We’ve seen the growing online speculation, so while this is still very new, we wanted to provide some clarity,” the duo wrote. “It was never our intention to purposely hide anything. Given the complicated relationship dynamics involved and the scrutiny that comes with being on a reality show, we needed a little space to process things privately before speaking on it.”
Their message continued, “We’ve shown up for each other as friends over the years, through all the highs and lows, and what’s developed recently was the last thing either of us expected. Our connection grew out of a genuine, long-standing friendship, which made it especially important for us to approach this with care.”
“As our feelings evolved, we wanted to take time to understand exactly what we were feeling,” Amanda and West added. “We also recognize that this has had an impact beyond just us and never wanted our actions to cause any hurt or be perceived as careless.”
They concluded their statement by writing, “We truly appreciate the understanding and respect as we navigate this.”
Ciara and West dated while filming 2023’s season 8 of Summer House. They continued exploring their connection after the season wrapped, including a visit to Wilson’s family in Missouri and Chicago. The pair called it quits at the end of 2023. West then opened up to The New York Times about his romance with Ciara, who later claimed his comments painted her as the “villain” when he was the one who couldn’t commit.
Amanda, for her part, was previously married to Kyle Cooke for four years before announcing their divorce in January.
Ciara explained during her Glamour interview on Friday that she waited to speak out about the drama because she wanted her comments to hold weight.
“I want to do it in my way, in a way that feels more intentional than just a podcast or a comment under a picture,” she explained.
She also pointed out that she had “less than 24 hours” notice about the statement before it was posted. “I read it with the rest of the world,” she said. “There’s something about the lack of being able to say each other’s names in the statement that I found very telling, but I don’t know.”
When asked about her most recent conversation with Amanda, Ciara said “minimal” words were exchanged.
“That’s something I will talk about at the reunion,” she added, explaining that “everyday changes” her feelings on the scandal.
“It’s like a weird flow of what you thought the past couple of years of your life looked like, and what you thought relationships were versus what they actually are. It’s tricky,” she said, teasing the upcoming reunion, which will be full of “mental warfare” — as they all are.
“Filming a reality TV show and then sitting at a reunion eight months later is not normal,” Ciara added. “It’s not real life; it’s having to remember everything you said or give a reason for why you said everything you said. I’m a bit nervous.”
When asked about the betrayal, Ciara said she was way more hurt by Amanda than West.
“At the end of the day, a guy’s a guy,” she said. “Whether or not West and I are working on a relationship, you just can’t put anything past a man. But I just never would think that it would come from someone like Amanda, who has been what has felt like in my circle and in my corner for so long. I think that’s the craziest part.”
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