Michelle Saniei Lally and Jesse Lally have decided to divorce, but it turns out they almost split another time beforehand.
Before The Valley’s Lallys decided to divorce, there were concerns from Jesse that Michelle Saniei Lally was checking out of the relationship.
In Season 1, Episode of 5 of The Valley, Jesse Lally got candid with Jax Taylor, Jason Caperna, Luke Broderick, and Zack Wickham about his six-year marriage. The men — minus Danny Booko — lounged in the pool as the women headed to Malibu, and Jesse admitted that therapy sessions between him and Michelle were “a disaster.”
“It’s like complete chaos,” said Jesse, echoing previous claims that there was “constant conflict all the time.”
Jesse then dropped a bombshell confession, giving viewers a stark view of where their marriage stood before they ultimately decided to divorce.
When did Jesse Lally and Michelle Saniei Lally divorce?
Jesse confessed that he and his real estate partner wife were going through “superficial issues,” but that Michelle had applied for an apartment one year earlier, stating her intention to move out.
“I was a little blindsided by it; I didn’t see it coming at all,” Jesse said in his confessional. “But after talking about it for a couple of hours, and me sort of asking for a second chance and asking her what she wanted me to focus on, we decided to give it a second chance.”
Jesse told the others that giving Michelle space was his “best option,” though the pair eventually announced their breakup at The Valley premiere party in March 2024 after filming for the series wrapped. At the time, he said the reasons for their divorce would be “a major storyline.”
“People evolve,” he told Us Weekly. “If your marriage and relationship doesn’t evolve with it, it will never work, no matter how bad you want it.”
Michelle Saniei Lally on Her Marriage, Divorce
Meanwhile, in Malibu, Brittany Cartwright — who also announced her split from Jax ahead of The Valley premiere — caught up with Michelle to check the temperature of the Lallys’ marriage, and it sounded like things were about to reach a fever pitch.
“Jesse goes through his patches of trying, but I don’t know if it’s 100 percent sincere,” Michelle said. “I’m more unhappy than happy.”
Michelle said she has felt unsatisfied with Jesse since the birth of the couple’s 3-year-old daughter, Isabella Bunny Lally. She added that Jesse was more “hands-on” when COVID-19 restrictions were in place, and that distance grew once those restrictions relaxed.
“I do have resentment,” Michelle admitted to producers. “It is hard to swallow that I felt so alone for so long. We drifted apart.”
Michelle continued that she wasn’t sure they could get back to where they once were, and though she acknowledged she could see her husband “trying,” she reverted to her previous position of wanting out.
More than anything, Michelle believed separating would be better for Isabella.
“I do think the constant fighting and bickering and not smiling, I think it’s unhealthy for our daughter,” said Michelle. “Sometimes I think that it’d be better off that she would see two happy, good friends as opposed to us together unhappy.”
Despite the later decision to divorce, Michelle told Brittany that Jesse was “an amazing father.”
Michelle’s Friendship with a Director
The men half-joked that Michelle kept busy by stepping out to see an unnamed but “super famous” director, as Luke called him.
“Michelle always claims that she doesn’t know who famous people are, but she was going out with [redacted] for a couple of days straight,” Jax told producers. “She goes to Chateau [Marmont] every day. She walks down from her house, and she just so happened to have met him at the pool, and they got along, and they were talking…”
Jesse, however, was unfazed even though he acknowledged Michelle has spent some time with the director.
Jax — having known Jesse for years — said he was unsure if Jesse made fun of the situation as a means to deflect. Jesse did, however, state that Michelle having an affair would be “the one straw” that marked the point of no return.
“I think when you’re secure enough in a relationship or in yourself, you trust Michelle is not going to do anything,” Jesse told his buddies.
To add to the drama, Luke told producers he has a secret about the relationship that could “end everything.”
Watch as the drama continues on The Valley, airing Tuesdays at 9/8c on Bravo and streaming the next day on Peacock.