‘RHOC’ Star Heather Dubrow on Shannon’s ‘New Chapter’ & Alexis’ Return (Exclusive)

“The Real Housewives of Orange County” star Heather Dubrow is dishing on Season 18, which will be the 100th “Housewives” season!

“Extra’s” Melvin Robert sat down with Heather, who teased that there will be both drama and laughs and said she’s also excited to showcase her work with the LGBTQIA+ community.

She spoke about some friction with castmate Gina Kirschenheiter, the return of Alexis Bellino, and Shannon Beador’s “new chapter” after her DUI arrest.

Shannon is “doing really well,” despite her arrest. Heather noted, “We were just texting the other day. Our kids just were at a concert together and we were laughing about that.”

Heather teased, “Shannon’s in a new chapter of her life and the audience is going to really be interested to see how that unfolds.”

Alexis is back this season too and dating Shannon's ex John Janssen, which is sure to stir up some controversy.

Heather said she has been pushing for Alexis to make a comeback for a while, noting, “I’ve been friends with Alexis for years and we became a lot closer in the last few years through our kids, and I’ve been campaigning for her to come back for the last couple of years.”

While things are “great” with Alexis, Heather didn’t always see eye-to-eye with Gina.

Heather explained, “Gina and I have been friends for a few years now and we have a very close relationship and I think that she didn’t value that relationship with some other friend."

As for how they can resolve their issues, Dubrow answered, “One of Gina’s great qualities is she will put everything on the table, and when we had an issue this season, she laid it all out for me, told me her part in it, and we were eventually able to move past it.”

Heather added, "I love Gina, we're friends. Unless you do something to my kids, I can pretty much come back from anything."

This season will also shine a light on the LGBTQIA+ community, which was very important for Heather.

She said, “I have four kids, all different genders and sexualities, and it was one of the reasons why we came back to the show after a break was to say, ‘Hey, look, this is our very normal family, and if you don’t see someone that looks like you or your family on TV, maybe it’s us.’”

Heather also opened up about recently celebrating 25 years with husband Terry Dubrow and recreating their honeymoon in Italy.

She gushed, “We happened to be in Venice on our 25-year anniversary to the day of when we got there for our honeymoon. We recreated the picture. It’s really cute.”

Dubrow also shared her take on marriage, saying, “Marriage is just, it's a leap of faith... Life throws your curveballs and it’s all about how you grow together, work on things together and date each other."

She continued, "Marriage, it's a relationship. It's work. You have to want to be there... I don't believe in staying together over everything else, but I think if you get lucky — and I got lucky — but if you get lucky and you meet that person who is your best friend and your soulmate and your world and you get to go through life with that person, that's special. I got that."