The Real Reason Why Sammi Sweetheart Won't Be Back For Jersey Shore Family Vacation

The MTV show Jersey Shore skyrocketed to success and quickly became the voice of its generation (to much of that generation's dismay). The show was known for the cast's partying ways, preoccupation with hair gel, going to the gym, and tanning. It ran for six seasons from 2009-2012, and in 2011 it was the most-watched prime-time cable show. 

Six years after the cast left the shore for good, MTV announced that the cast will be back for a reunion. The new show will be called Jersey Shore Family Vacation and will take place in Miami; it is set air in 2018.

The entire original cast have signed on aside from Sammi "Sweetheart" Giancola. Much speculation has been going around as to why she won't be returning for the reunion, and in Sammi's own words, STAHP!!! We're going to give you the rundown. 

Ronnie and Sammi hit it off almost immediately in season one of Jersey Shore, but the couple had many ups and downs over the course of filming the six seasons. Most memorably, the fight where Ronnie trashed their shared bedroom in the shore house. Or when Sammi turned to physical violence and punched Ronnie in the face just for talking to JWoww. 

And who can forget the time Ronnie criticized Sammi's 'Fred Flintstone toe'. Their relationship made for some entertaining television, but didn't seem completely healthy overall, so no one can blame Sammi for not wanting to dive headfirst back into that same situation.

In 2009, when Jersey Shore first came on the air, most of cast were in their early 20s and content to party all the time. Sammi was only 22 during the first season of the shore and, like others her age, she hit the clubs almost every night as documented on the show. 

She's since crossed over into her 30s, and judging by her Instagram, there seems to be a significant shift in her priorities. Her social media presence focuses on promoting her clothing line and Biscardi's fitness business called The Strength Spot. The duo share images on Instagram of quiet nights at home — a big departure from the boozed-filled nights shown on MTV.

On Snooki's podcast It's Happening with Snooki & Joey in the episode titled "On the Move," the former Jersey Shore cast member discusses how the reunion came about in the first place, and spills the tea on why she believes Sammi isn't returning to the show.

"Everyone's asking why Sammi's not doing it. You have to ask her that — I'm not gonna speak for her. But Sammi is just in such a happy place that I feel like she doesn't want to jump back into that drama if it does happen." She goes on to say, "Filming the show, Jersey Shore, back then ... it was crazy. It took a toll on you. It was very emotional. And being that there was a lot of Ron and Sam drama when we did film, it was just really hard on both of them. So I just think she doesn't want that anymore."

If past seasons are any indication, the house is most definitely going going to be drama-filled. She's happy, so why mess with that? It's understandable if Sammi doesn't want to entangle herself in possible drama. 

The cast has really grown up in the six years since the show went off the air. Snooki and JWoww are mothers, starring in the show Moms with Attitude on Go90. Ronnie has a baby on the way, and Mike "The Situation" has settled down in a long-term relationship. But Sammi might be understandably worried that the new show will trigger similar drama from before. In past seasons, she didn't get along with the cast at times, which caused some truly epic on-air fights.

Clearly that's all behind them, though, because Snooki sent a plea out to Sammi on her podcast, It's Happening with Snooki & Joey. She said, "It's gonna be different. We're all begging her to come back on the show. It's really up to her. Everyone pray that Sammi comes back, because I feel like she might change her mind. So Sam, if you're listening, come to the show. Like, stop being — stop it. Stop it right now before I spank you."

Fingers crossed that Sammi gets the message before filming starts!

Sammi is passionate about her podcast, Just Sayin', which features "the type of honest and hilarious talk you're only used to getting from your closest friends." She and her co-host Clare Galterio "dish over the latest developments in their own lives, as well as share their takes on the hottest celebrity gossip." She's been releasing new episodes almost every week since August 2015, so she's clearly dedicated. Fun fact: former castmate Vinny Guadagnino even appeared in episode 12 of the show.

Sammi also has a clothing line, Sweetheart Styles, comprised of typical guidette garb that she promotes heavily on her Instagram and Twitter accounts. The former reality star launched a perfume in 2011 as well, called Dangerous, which is available in Mandee stores and on her personal site.

Sammi told E! News in the summer of 2017 that she has a new man, Christian Biscardi — though she shared their first picture together on her Instagram in April 2017. She's been positively gushing on social media, writing sappy captions under photos of the two of them like — "My heart is full", "Pure happiness" and "So in love with this man."

He also received the stamp of approval from former castmate Jenni "JWoww" Farley, who told InTouch: "We've met him and he is such a sweet guy. He makes Sammi happy, so he's good in my book." When the family from the shore approves, you know it must be real. Biscardi also made the cut as her date to fellow Jersey Shore alum Deena Cortese's wedding, and Pauly D and Vinny even showed their playful side with the couple in this picture Sammi shared on her Instagram.

Though Sammi seems to be happy with her new beau, it's still quite fresh — it might be too soon in the relationship to survive a Jersey Shore revival. Ronnie and Sammi dated on and off for nearly eight years and had a real long-term connection — being in close quarters with him might be tempting. There's a reason why that on-again-off-again cycle in relationships is so common.

CNN reported on research that showed how relationships can have addictive properties, comparable to a drug problem. Brenda Schaeffer, a psychologist and certified sexual addiction specialist, explained to CNN that when you go through a breakup, not only do you need to deal with that person's absence from your life, but you're also dealing with a chemical withdrawal.

During filming, Sammi and Ronnie broke up and got back together several times. When the show ended in 2012, they maintained their relationship until August 2014. Ronnie spoke of their split to Us Weekly, saying: "We just grew our separate ways. ... I love her as a person and I care about her. ... At the end of the day, we went through a lot of stuff together. We have a lot of history so I keep her close." They reportedly rekindled their relationship again in 2016 and celebrated Sammi's 29th birthday together. 

Their relationship is familiar and comfortable. There's a deep history and a lot of good memories, so it could be easy to slip back into it. If Sammi joined Ronnie on the Jersey Shore revival, she may fall off the wagon — with Ronnie being her drug of choice.

In episode 99 of her podcast, Just Sayin, Sammi reveals that she hates to watch herself: "I get embarrassed," she said. "I can do it by myself, but when I'm with other people, I don't want to watch or see myself on TV or listen to myself on the radio." 

She then lets her audience in on a little secret — MTV made the cast watch the previous season of the show to get them hyped up for filming. "You had to, they made us watch the episodes, it was so annoying." Sammi also shared her motto, which gives a little insight into why she may not be returning to the show: "Let it go, let it flow." She's clearly ready to move on.

Sammi has also turned to a more low-key lifestyle. She revealed to E! News that she's hoping to keep her current relationship a little more private, even saying that "it's refreshing" to be out of the spotlight.

In an interview with TooFab, Ronnie had nothing but nice things to say about Sammi: "I made a decision and she made a decision, there's nothing I can really say about that," he told TooFab. "As someone who was around her forever, you gotta respect that ... and we just wish her the best. If she's happy and she's in an amazing place, God bless her, and we all really do just wish her the best and nothing but good things for her."

When asked what would happen if Sammi changed her mind and came on the show, Ronnie had this to add: "I think we're all in different places in our lives, where certain people are focused on who's married and who's buying a house and their careers and all this other stuff, that I really don't think it would even matter."

The fact that Ronnie is so calm and level-headed when talking about Sammi signals maturity and closure around their relationship, but that could be undone if they get back in touch. Relationship psychologist Grace Larson wrote for Vox: "When people see their ex-partner, they tend to feel more sad ... and also more in love with their ex."

Ronnie and Sammi's on-again-off-again relationship involved a lot of strong emotions, and clearly took a toll on them both. Even though Sammi's in a serious relationship, it might still be difficult and confusing to see Ronnie. We can't blame her for not wanting to be stuck in a reality show with her ex-boyfriend, especially considering he's expecting a child with his new girlfriend, Jen Harley.

Ronnie made the announcement on Instagram in December 2017, proudly hugging Harley's growing belly. In the caption he wrote: "Thank you to everyone who has been supportive with advice & encouragement. People keep saying becoming a parent is the part of life [sic]. I've been blessed enough to have SOO MANY best parts of my life." 

In January 2018, Ronnie confirmed that Harley is six months along with some revealing hashtags. The couple hosted a gender reveal party in the same month, and shared that they are expecting a little girl. Here's hoping his future guidette arrives in time to be on the new show!