Credit: Instagram
Carl Radke is walking back on his comparison between his August 2023 split from Lindsay Hubbard and his brother Curtis Radke‘s August 2020 accidental overdose death.
During a couple of new interviews ahead of the season eight premiere of Summer House, Carl, 39, reflected on his remark, reacted to claims of “blindsiding” Lindsay, 37, with their breakup, and shared if they’re currently speaking while also teasing the “conflict” that is to come and sharing his thoughts on the trailer.
“I made a comment at BravoCon about this breakup being harder than the passing of my brother, and that is not true,” Carl clarified to Us Weekly on February 18. “What I wanted to say was just [that] the public nature of all this, and the confusion around what’s been said and all the different back and forth, it is really, really hard when you go through a breakup in such a public way.”
According to Carl, Curtis’ death was “arguably the hardest day” of his life and he never meant to “[impact] or hurt” anyone by comparing the two.
“The breakup has been really, really, really hard, but I would do anything in the world to take my brother back,” he said.
While the Summer House trailer was quite dramatic, with Carl accusing Lindsay of being “really gifted at playing victim,” and his stepdad telling him, “I’ve been a minister all my career and I’ve married tons of people. I wouldn’t marry you and Lindsay,” Carl said he was relieved once it was shared.
“I was, in a way, glad it was out. The bandaid was ripped off,” he explained. “But it was also really surreal to rewatch some of those moments that I lived through.”
Although Carl has been accused of calling producers to film his breakup with Lindsay, he denied claims of a setup.
“I didn’t call production [during] season 5 when my brother passed away and I got a phone call. … We are a big part of this show. We’ve been filming it for eight seasons. I didn’t call production to purposely set something up like that. And it’s unfortunate that she feels that way,” he noted.
In the months since their split, Carl and Lindsay have sent some texts back and forth. However, when it comes to their current situation, Carl confirmed they are “not in communication.”
“It’s very emotional, obviously,” he explained. “I don’t take the sanctity of getting engaged lightly, or getting married. … I just pray and hope that she finds happiness and I can find happiness. I do believe we’re going to be happier in different directions.”
During another interview, on February 19 with Decider, Carl looked back on his BravoCon appearance, which came just months after his and Lindsay’s split.
“I was very nervous, obviously very anxious,” he admitted. “I really hadn’t been in much of the Bravo environments or seen other friends. I was very sad and depressed, trying to figure out what was going on and how to move forward. But BravoCon … I was blown away by the response and reception, not only from some of my castmates, but also the fans and other people at Bravo.”
As Carl parted ways with Lindsay, he teamed back up with Kyle Cooke, 41, rejoining his Loverboy brand and promoting a non-alcoholic option.
“I don’t blame [Carl] for him wanting to remove himself from the day-to-day, particularly with us not having a non-alcohol option. And now that we’re back, having gone through it all, I think we understand, like, he’s going to be part-time,” Kyle revealed. “He can have the freedom to do other things to further his career. And, you know, you can kind of pursue your own interests. So I feel like we found the perfect happy medium.”
As Summer House fans await the premiere, Carl said viewers will soon understand what led up to his breakup.
“We started out this summer, the first week, and we were there in some conflict. So it wasn’t just like at the end of the summer, all of a sudden, out of nowhere,” he shared. “You will see these ups and downs and the ruptures that had gone on. And I think you’ll see both of us wrestling with these issues and trying to figure out how to move forward to resolve them.”
“It’s hard because even rewatching that part of the trailer back – I almost didn’t remember some of it because it’s so intense. Your body kind of protects itself and you don’t remember every word. But watching it back was very surreal. And seeing her in the bedroom was just a very strange feeling, watching that back,” he added.
Looking back at the events of Summer House season eight, Kyle shared his thoughts on Carl’s decision to call off his wedding to Lindsay.
“I know both of them really wanted it. I know both of them loved each other. I know that the relationship was built on a really strong friendship where they supported one another. So despite all the red flags, I was still trying to still be that supportive friend that they could lean on,” he insisted. “It’s almost harder to rise up and cancel a wedding and postpone or end an engagement or a relationship than it is to get down on one knee. But I just got a lot of respect for Carl. And at the end of the day, I feel for both of them.”
“It’s not like this is what either one of them wanted. So it’s tough,” he added.
Also during the interview, Carl and Kyle weighed in on Lindsay’s reconciliation with Danielle Olivera, 35.
“I think a lot of us in the house wanted Danielle and Lindsay to resolve because they do have that friendship that we all know and love. So they were working on it even after the reunion and going into the summer,” Carl shared. “I’m not sure where they have been in the last few months as far as their friendship, but I’m happy that they have [made up].”
As for Kyle, he said that after worrying about Danielle’s potential refusal to film with Lindsay, he was happy to see them do a “180.”
“I think just proves that, OK, there’s a true friendship there. They forgive, they forget. It’s like water under the bridge,” he reasoned.
Summer House season eight premieres on Thursday, February 22, at 9/8c on Bravo.
