this is "nightline" >> tonight scanned val inside the cheating scandal that broke the internet. >> i don't give a [bleep].

your friendship is [bleep]. >> no it's not. >> yes, it is. >> why we can't stop talking about the vanderpump rules a fair. >> it was like a nuclear bomb and all hell broke loose after that. >> what it says about our obsession of gossip. >> this is a group you sleep with my boyfriend i'm mad for now and then we go back to being best friends. >> and what the continuer circle is saying now. plus honoring a hero brandon psi helping his communities heal months after stopping a gunman on a shooting rampage saving lives. >> community came together to celebrate and to honor the members of our community and to just recall that dancing can bring so much happiness to our lives. >> now after sacrificing so much for others, getting a big check to help his dreams come true. and the little mermaid, one on one with diggs the voice have sebastian the crab in the live

action remake. >> i was terrified until the first day of rehearsal highway am i going to mess this up. >> the broadway power house star of hamilton. ♪ >> now singing the classic under the sea and why the film's diversity is so personal for him. ♪ "nightline" will be right ♪ zyrteeeec...♪ works hard at hour one and twice as hard when you take it again the next day. so betty can be the... barcode beat conductor. ♪ go betty! ♪ let's be more than our allergies! zeize the day. with zyrtec.

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>> good evening, thanks for joining us i'm andrew dimburg. we begin tonight with an affair two starts from the popular reality show van der pump rules hooking up causing major divisions within the tight friendship circle in the show and opening veins for millions revealing the cultural obsession with goss op and scandal, why do some of us care so much. here's abc's megan wright. ♪ >> so i'm driving in hollywood, you know, it's a place full of dreams. >> you have the young and the beautiful that flock here for a chance at fame and some of them find it in reality tv. for fans and even the cast of the popular show van der pump rules there will forever be two realities, one before and now one after scandoval. >> it was like a nuclear bomb

and all hell broke loose after that. it was just so brazen and bold and wonderful viewing. >> i don't give a [bleep] about [bleep]. your friendship is [bleep] bull [bleep]. >> no it's not. >> yes, it is. >> scandoval is something that consumed the lives of every single bravo who will i can for two months. >> i believe somebody who has studied reality shows and watched them all this is the biggest scandal that's happened in reality show history. >> reporter: but how did a singular cheating scandal on a reality tv show pierce the public consciousness from the new york times to time magazine, there were explainers, tutorials, breakdowns and more. >> tom sandoval and ariana maddox has broken up. >> our office is in free fall. >> et confirmed the long time loves are done. >> scandoval also opened up a deeper conversation about the

impact these shows have on some viewers lives and collective obsession with celebrity culture and gossip. >> people used to be embarrassed to say they watched it and now it's your go-to guilty pleasure. you can be a well-rounded person and care about what's happening in ukraine and also what's happening at sir. you can. >> why should we feel guilty about these things? and i'll bring us back to the question of gender. because we don't say we feel guilty for watching the super bowl. so when we think about what's conceptualized as trashy, trivial, the viewership or the readership is anticipated to be women. yet we know that men are engaging as well. >> reporter: for beginner, vaned pump rules started as the story behind the scenes of the west hollywood restaurant sir. >> van der pump rules is gigantic wine glass, 30% sexy,

30% unique, 20% the drunkest you've ever seen human beings behavior on camera. some people consider the soprano's the greatest show of all times which i'm one of those people. i would say vanderpump rules is the soprano's of reality tv. like it's one of the best casted shows ever in reality tv because it wasn't really casted. it was an organic group of friends. >> these relationships feel organic they don't feel forced like two house wives who got together because they're rich and on the same show. they're actually friends with each other and i think the viewer can feel that. >> reporter: to understand what happened, first it's important to know who's who. when it comes to scandoval it comes down to three main players, tom sandoval, long time boyfriend to ariana maddox. then there's raquel levitt who joined in season five while dating sir busboy turned d.j. james kennedy.

after james and raquel broke up the former pageant queen stayed on the show working at sir becoming best friends with ariana. meanwhile ariana and tom celebrated nine anniversaries bought a house together and released a book. all smooth sailing until march of this year when it came out that tom and raquel were having an affair. >> this is a group where you sleep with my boyfriend, i'm mad at you for now and then we go back to being best friends. the dynamic between all of us is very strange but it's incredible to watch. and even though we've all evolved into different jobs and buying homes, having children, the level of crazy is still there. i mean we've come full circle. we're back to, oh, my gosh, someone banged someone else's boyfriend except the stakes are much higher. >> reporter: do you remember like exactly where you were when you found out about scandoval. >> well, i was suspicious about

sandoval and raquel having a thing for a while but i was in my office and i got a text message saying cameras were going back up, and i was like we got season 11 already? yay! and they said, no, something has happened. i then called my friend sheen a who had just been with raquel the night before. she said i can't talk and i said all i need to know is what i've been suspecting and i said yes and i just lost my mind. >> reporter: lots of people say why is this such a big deal, you know, there's been divorces and cheating. it's like, no, they were all best friends. so everybody feels like they were cheated on. >> how was i so blind to this? >> reporter: jamie lynn and kale are members of the circle, fans of the show may recognize them. they're occasionally glimpsed in episodes. jamie looks back now and says she unknowingly captured an intimate video of tom and raquel

at the office the night the affair started. >> i thought they were developing a deeper friendship, sandoval and raquel kind of sitting right in front of the car. but they knew we were there and then we got out of the car and we show it to them and they're laughing. no one's antennas go up and not even them. i get back in the car and i re-watch it. then i start noticing how close they actually were and the body language and the way they're looking at each other. i said i'm actually not going to post this i'm going to pretend it never happened because if i post this and ariana sees this she might get the wrong idea. meanwhile it wouldn't have been it's actually what was happening. raquel and tom posted apologies on social media. i can only imagine how devastating this must be for ariana and everyone around us i feel horrible about that. raquel posts there's no excuse i'm not a victim and most my

actions. i deeply regret hurting ariana a. ariana wrote what doesn't kill me better love. >> scandoval has been great for business. i love it i don't want it to end. >> reporter: with a new season to come, the drama on vander pump rules isn't over which means our collective obsession with watching other people live their lives is here to stay as well. >> ours that to meghan you can watch the entire episode of anatomy of scandoval on "nightline" streaming on hulu. coming up a big surprise for a mass shooter who disarmed a man

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♪ >> andrew: as we celebrate asian american hawaiian american month we look at brandon tsay who took down a mass shooter in lunar new grier celebrations in monterey park california. brandon has spent much of his young life sacrificing to help others now he's getting a surprise to help his dream come true. >> reporter: brandon tsay is praised by many in his home town of monterey park, california. some even call him a hero. >> you're not very comfortable with that board, though, are you? >> it's a new word for me. hero, there's a lot of used up once you're called a hero. >> reporter: the 26 year old is now known around the nation for his courageous act earlier this year. during the lunar new year celebration, brutal violence rocked his community when a gunman killed 11 people at

nearby star ballroom dance studio. the gunman then headed towards lai lai ballroom the distance studio brandon built until he was confronted by brandon. >> what was going through your mind. >> something came over me grabbed the weapon he was hitting me in the face bark the back of my head. finally i was able to pull the gun away from him. >> reporter: i'm sure you played the incident through and through if your mind over and over again. what stays with you. >> what stays with me is the fact that my life ended, the lives of the people in that studio and that the impact could really have harmed those around me, my family, my community. >> reporter: this isn't the first time his quiet heroism has been on display. when brandon was just 19, his

mother yvonne was diagnosed with lung cancer. brandon dropped everything, including college to help care for her. >> she had a huge responsibility to the studio at the time and i felt that it was within my duty to uphold that responsibility for her. >> reporter: she passed away in 2017. brandon and his sister remained a fixture at lai lai ever since. >> we're going to have eli lilly. >> reporter: the night of the shooting brandon was working late because he wanted to let other employees spend lunar new year with their families. have you asked yourself what your mom would have thought of your actions that night? >> she would have scolded me really badly. she would have said don't do something so stupid. a gun? run away. after that initial thought i think she would have been really proud. >> reporter: now four months later, the dance floor at lai lai is booming. brandon and his ballroom family surrounded by the bright lights,

and sparkling gowns at their annual show case. a celebration usually to honor their grandmother, joyce, but this year they wanted to celebrate the community. and everyone being back together after the harrowing shooting. >> since the incident, you know, we've been struggling with many challenges. our customers, they consider our studio, lai lai, a second home, you know? if they're not at home, lai lai, i felt that the community came together to celebrate and to honor the members of our community and to just recall that dancing can bring so much happiness to our lives. >> reporter: brandon says his new found fame has brought him out of his shell and with no sign of his spotlight dimming he's now thinking about his own goals, finishing college. it does make you feel that like life is so precious. >> even more solidified that life is fragile. right now i'm thinking of getting back to education, going

back to college, taking up different majors. >> reporter: we wanted to help him achieve his goals, surprising him live on good morning america with mice colleague. >> so they want to give you $10,000. so they are giving you $20,000. >> reporter: and so when the shooting happened how do you think that changed you? >> i'm more outgoing now. it's been a new experience for me where a lot of individuals have come up to me and try to connect with me, and i'm happy. i'm glad that they're trying to do this. it makes me feel comforted. >> andrew: our thanks to juju. when we come back, nightline co-anchor byron pitts goes one on one with today vie diggs the voice of sebastian the crab in the live action remake of the little mermaid. ♪

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♪ >> andrew: you might know him from his tv roles on blackish or blind spotting or perhaps from the smash brought way hit hamilton. daveed diggs a grammy and tony winner welcome to nightline glad to have you on the show. >> thanks very much man. nice to be here. >> andrew: you're the voice of the character sebastian the crab in the new live action remake of the little mermaid, this iconic story. so what do you think are you

enjoying it? >> i hadn't seen it until the premier in los angeles. i had no idea what i was walking into and it's a really beautiful film and rob marshall's direction is unbelievable. it's so gorgeous, so moving. i cried like ten times. >> andrew: is that right. >> haley barrie is a generational talent we're so lucky this movie is happening at the age when she can play it. unreal. you two are generational talents great timing beautiful voice. >> i appreciate it. >> reporter: we have a clip from the movie where we get to hear that talent. >> all right, let's do it. ♪ under the sea, under the sea stow snow darling it's better take it from me. >> that is a song that lives for generations, it is it's one thing to take on a new project and create it it's another to take on something people already hold dear. >> i was terrified until the first day of rehearsal honestly. i was like, how am i going to

mess this up, you know? but then the environment rob created was so much about play and performance specificity and actually making it our own and it's such a joy full experience i can't even describe it. it translates to the film you can see it, it's amazing. >> that's the beautifully of excellence that game recognizes game and when you bring together a dynamic cast you have the confidence to give them their freedom. >> a lot of my work was with aqua even if a and jay be, aqua even if a one of the funniest humans on the planet and melissa mccarthy work's unreal. >> you are the son of biracial parents. >> uh-huh. >> in this age that we live in now where people are engaged in the notion not being color blind but color brave, how does that shape projects that you choose to take now, this issue of representation and being seen. >> what's undeniable is that when the commercials for mermaid started dropping and you started

getting the response videos of little brown girls watching the trailers and the way their eyes light up that's incredibly important and it's a thing i didn't have whiffs a kid, you know? my mother used to get our children's books and color the characters in with brown ray i don'ts. she couldn't find kids books with brown kids in them so she did it herself so she felt the story would be about us. the mermaid cast is so diverse and so many wonderful things going on without trying. you watch the film and you never question that javier is halle's father, it doesn't come up. they're not the same skin corps or ethnicity but the story telling and connection is so palpable, that was my life my mother's white. nobody ever questioned that either, i walk into a store i look like her. that's my mom. >> reporter: i ask this question of people who are gone their moment in life. the question is, if there's one thing in life you no sure for which you have no doubt. >> oh, man.

whatever time line you have for yourself you should go ahead and throw that out. everything gets easier once you stop letting time stress you out and just be what you are when you are. >> reporter: all right, man. congratulations to you, continued grace and success. >> oh, thank you. i appreciate you so much. thanks for having me. >> reporter: you can catch daveed diggs as the voice much sebastian in disney's the little mermaid in theaters everywhere. ♪ >> something for moviegoers to look forward to this holiday weekend. disney is the parent company for abc news our thanks to byron. that's "nightline" you can catch full episodes on hulu. see you right here at the same time on monday. thanks for staying up with us. good night america.