UPDATE 9:30am: Shortly after speaking with HollywoodLife.com at the VERGE CBD event, Ronnie was arrested around 2:40am after getting into an ‘altercation’ with Jen. The LAPD confirmed that an altercation took place, but did not confirm the identities of those involve. Ronnie was reportedly booked, and thankfully, the police could confirm the child involved in the situation was unharmed. Full details can be found HERE.
Original story: It’s been more than a year of ups and downs for Ronnie Ortiz-Magro and Jen Harley, but right now, they’re in a good place. Fans started speculating that the two were dating once again after they were photographed holding hands in Beverly Hills on Oct. 3, and just hours later, Ronnie told us that the rumors are true! “We have a strong love for each other,” Ronnie told HollywoodLife EXCLUSIVELY, while celebrating the launch of VERGE CBD at Poppy Nightclub in West Hollywood. “What we have is real and what everyone sees [on Jersey Shore] is fake. At the end of the day, you have to realize what you have is real and what everyone else is judging you on isn’t real.”
When asked point-blank if he was single or taken, Ronnie revealed, “I’m always taken. At the end of the day, I’m a family man, and what I really want is a family — my daughter and my girlfriend. If this do not work out [with Jen] I’d love to be the best father I can be, so every day, that’s what I’m striving for. I’m trying to be a role model and a hero for my daughter.” Ronnie and Jen welcomed their daughter, Ariana, in April 2018, and have been working on how to best co-parent her, despite their relationship struggles, ever since.
Ronnie and Jen have broken up and gotten back together countless times over the last two years. In fact, on the episode of Jersey Shore that aired on Oct. 3, he insisted that he was done with her for good. “Last night was the last straw,” he told Vinny Guadagnino in the episode, which was filmed at the beginning of May. During the episode, Jen flipped out and accused Ronnie of going ‘M.I.A.’ on her after returning from a trip to Cabo. However, Ronnie insisted that everything was fine in the relationship. Jenni “JWoww” Farley was not happy that Ron was being untruthful, so she decided to invite Jen out with the group behind his back. Naturally, when Ronnie found out, he was pissed, and after having some words with JWoww, he made the declaration that he would not be getting back together Jen.
Of course, they did end up getting back together, but at the end of August, new tensions rose. Ronnie began posting cryptic messages to his Instagram, and Jen went off on him in a series of posts on her Instagram story. By Sept. 6, it was widely reported that they had broken up. Clearly, they’ve been able to reconcile in the weeks since.
The other stars of Jersey Shore have made it clear that they’re OVER the back and forth between Ronnie and Jen, and have openly blamed Jen for Ronnie’s struggles over the last few years. However, Ronnie explained in our interview that the apparent tension is not as bad as it looks. “My co-stars love Jen,” he told us. “When we’re all together not filming, we all get along. We all have a good time. We all laugh and joke.”
During our interview, Ronnie was promoting Verge’s CBD products. He explained that he has an important connection to CBD, which is why he wanted to partner up with the brand. “I have a younger cousin who suffers from cerebral palsy and epilepsy,” Ronnie explained. “I watched him grow throughout his life, never being able to talk, never being able to say mama or dada. He’ll never be able to walk. All I kept hearing about was CBD. So, when I moved to California, I got involved in the THC side and you learn and you grow and that was my college, I say. Now, I learned that CBD can work. Whether it’s THC or marijuana, it’s better than what’s out there. I’ve always suffered from anxiety and I never believed in pills like Xanax — it makes you feel something that you’re not. I feel like it’s something that you’re able to control and it’s something that you’re able to be yourself on. For me, it’s always worked. I’m able to control it, which is why I use the product and it works for me.”