Tonight The Real World: Skeletons is premiering on MTV, and we’re stoked to see another lesbian cast member on the reality television institution. Set in Chicago, this season is bound to bring the drama with a wild new twist. Each episode, a “skeleton” from one of the cast member’s pasts will arrive on their doorstep to stay and force each person deal with the mistakes, issues, and bad behavior from their dark past.
Out housemate Nicole Zanatta is an outspoken EMT from Staten Island with a thick accent, wandering eye, and penchant for seducing straight girls. The self-described “serial cheater” is training to be a firefighter, all about bro time, and makes no apologies for her player mentality. We spoke to Nicole about straight girls, skeletons, and her surprising new relationship with another (straight, obviously) MTV reality star.
AfterEllen: When did you know you were a lesbian?
Nicole Zanatta: Probably around 16. I saw a girl and thought she was really really attractive, and I went up to her and I spoke to her. That was it.
AE: Did you start dating girls right away?
NZ: Without a doubt, hell yeah. I wasn’t going to waste time.
AE: What was coming out like for you?
NZ: My family was very, very supportive. I’m one of triplets, and they’re both straight and both getting married, but everyone was extremely supportive. As the only girl on my high school’s football team as well as a lesbian, I remember not wanting to feel judged, and I don’t think I was because I played a good game.
AE: Did you see any similarities between yourself and Ari (another out lesbian and self-described player) from last season of The Real World?
NZ: Yes, I did. I thought that her girlfriend was very attractive, and I think Ari and I could be friends. Ari and I have similar styles, even though she’s more committed. Like I’m not the type to even say “I’m going to be faithful.” I date girls, but obviously, my eyes wander.
AE: So have you ever had a girlfriend?
NZ: Yeah, I’ve had maybe three or four exclusive relationships. My longest was three and a half syears.
AE: Which gay women are you crushing on?
NZ: Out gay women? None. I go for straight women because I like the challenge. Two of my girlfriends were straight. Straight girls appeal to me because they’re something I want that I can’t get. It’s all about the challenge.
AE: Do you consider yourself a player?
NZ: Yes, because I think my game is on point, and I don’t think I’ve ever messed up. The women always come back.
AE: Why is that?
NZ: Because I’m perfect! You know what? I talk good, and basically I treat them well. Obviously I cheat, but at the end of the day if I’m with you, I’m still with you, and that makes them feel comfortable. Honestly I’m not sure, I would never date me. I’m up front. I say, “This is my past and you either accept it or don’t accept it.” Someone might make me change, but I really haven’t found that one person yet.
AE: Do you want to find that one person?
NZ: Yeah, I’m talking to one person now, so we’ll see. She’s from a different show, and it’s going well.
AE: What’s her name, and what show is she from?
NZ: She’s from Are You The One, and her name is Brianna.
AE: How did you and Brianna meet?
NZ: Twitter! Someone commented, and then I commented back, and from then on we were talking.
AE: Do you meet a lot of girls on social media?
NZ: Not at all, Brianna is probably the one person that I’m constantly talking to now. Normally I meet people at bars, on the street. Normally.
AE: Let’s say you’re at a bar and want to approach a girl. How would you go about it?
NZ: Buy her a drink first [Writers Note: THIS WORKS. Stop being so stingy ,lesbos]. Then I’ll ask, “Do you have a boyfriend? Are you married? What’s your status?” and go from there.
AE: Would it bother you if they did?
NZ: Absolutely not.
AE: I didn’t think so. What about your friends, do you have a core group of lezbro friends that you go out with?
NZ: Actually, I don’t. I have a few gay friends, but most of them are straight women and straight men. I don’t really hang out with a lot of lesbians.
AE: Why?
NZ: Some of it’s drama, obviously the jealousy of “that’s my girlfriend you can’t talk to her,” so I try to curve away from that.
AE: What’s one of your craziest, weirdest hookup stories?
NZ: Way back like five years ago, I had a boyfriend and then I had a girlfriend. Then the boyfriend got a girlfriend, and then I cheated on my girlfriend with my ex-boyfriend’s girlfriend.
AE: Are you still working as an EMT?
NZ: Yeah, actually I work at three! I’m an EMT, a personal trainer, I save lives and have a job that always comes first. I’m also training to be a firefighter and will hopefully become a firefighter in two years.
AE: Did you go to any gay bars or lesbian nights while you were in Chicago?
NZ: Yes, absolutely. We went to Boystown! Boystown was awesome, there a lot a friendly people, but then some not so friendly people. You’re basically walking onto someone else’s turf. So they’re either going to love or hate it, and there were ups and downs.
AE: Did you hang out with any gay girls in Chicago?
NZ: No, I hooked up with a few, but that was it. Most of them, I think, were either bi or bicurious.
AE: When the cameras were on, did you feel like girls were flocking to you more than usual?
NZ: Absolutely not! The cameras actually hurt the game because women didn’t feel comfortable on camera. Normally you can go into a bar, hit on a straight girl like, “Hey, I’m gay,” and it wouldn’t matter. But when the cameras are on and a girl is taken, they can’t risk having that aired. Sometimes you’d have to walk them into the bathroom and talk to them. If that didn’t work, you’d have to walk them outside.
AE: On this season of The Real World, it’s all about skeletons, meaning someone coming back from a castmate’s past to haunt them. On MTV.com, everyone else’s skeleton seems more clear than yours. Why is your skeleton so vague, and can you tell us about it?
NZ: It is vague! I can’t tell you much, but it’s vague because I feel my skeleton was more of a personal problem and about bringing someone on to deal with it.
AE: Do you think bringing back something or someone from a dark past actually helped people in the Real World house with their issues?
NZ: Absolutely. That’s really, really important. If there’s someone you kind of stopped talked to, then why? What happened? That’s a question you have to ask. Also did that help this person grow, or did it hurt them? That’s a question you have to ask too. I think everyone watching The Real World this season is going to ask those questions, but the only people who can really answer are the cast members and their skeletons.
AE: Is anything you would say that lesbians can learn from you while watching The Real World: Skeletons?
NZ: They’re going to learn so much! They’re going to learn a lot about the game, a lot about women, and a lot about respect. Respect is a major thing to me. Know what you’re worth, because if you don’t know what you’re worth, people take full advantage of it.
The Real World: Skeletons premiers tonight on MTV at 10/9c! You can follow Nicole on Twitter.
