Rebecca Minkoff‘s husband probably didn’t anticipate being at the center of a paternity rumor when his wife joined The Real Housewives of New York cast but the couple are all Minkoff’s fellow cast members can talk about in Nov. 12 and Nov. 19 episodes of the show. However, even as fans learned the truth about the rumor, another rumor still prevails.
Minkoff has been married to director Gavin Bellour since 2009 and they share four children — sons Luca, 12, Nico, 5, and Leonardo, 1, and daughter Bowie, 9. The famous designer is better known for her eponymous fashion label than her personal life but RHONY has thrust her marriage into the spotlight, albeit self-inflicted.
In Nov. 12’s episode of RHONY, Minkoff enlisted the help of cast member Erin Lichy to trick the show’s other stars into believing she was secretly pregnant after an extramarital fling. “It’s very, very early on, and she’s really stressed about it,” Lichy told Jessel Taank and Brynn Whitfield during the episode.
After keeping up the rouse, the episode concluded with Minkoff and Lichy giggling about the “believable” lie and, in a preview for an upcoming episode, Lichy joked to the cameras, “This was all her idea, by the way.”
Minkoff previously expressed her desire to have fun and make jokes, not drama, in an October interview with Stylecaster, revealing that she wanted the show to portray, “another dimension of myself as an entertainer, a prankster, a girl’s girl.”
“I’m not suddenly going on the show and gossiping about the girls behind their backs or being catty,” Minkoff added.
However, another rumor raised in the episode still remains unanswered…
Are Minkoff and Bellour in an Open Relationship?
Though we know that Lichy was in on the prank to lie about Minkoff’s pregnancy, Whitfield also claimed that she verified the rumor with other mutual friends and learned that the couple have an open relationship.
Whitfield, who was a victim of Minkoff’s prank, said that she “asked around” after Lichy told her about the alleged pregnancy. “They’re getting around town, they have with other people and stuff
“I left that lunch [and] I immediately texted a bunch of people I know,” she told Taank during the episode. “I used to work with Gavin back in the day so I called some of our friends and I was like, ‘Is this their thing?’”
Whitfield alleged that her sources confirmed that the pair sleep with other people. “They’re cool, they’re bohemian, they sleep around,” she said. “He does not care and it’s not a big deal.”
However, RHONY fans are already speculating that Whitfield must be lying about fact-checking the claims. Needless to say, there is no evidence to suggest Minkoff and Ballour are in an open relationship and given Whitfield’s track record on the show, it’s not unlikely that she made up her contribution to the rumor mill.
All About Rebecca Minkoff’s Husband, Gavin Bellour
In his Instagram bio, Gavin Bellour describes himself as a “director, creative, [and] dad.”
Working primarily as a director and creative lead on commercials, Bellour has helmed projects for Netflix, Vogue, Under Armour, Viceland, Progressive Insurance and many more, per his website.
“I work across a lot of styles and platforms, but I’d say I’m most drawn to humor,” he told Little Black Book in an April interview. “I’m just kind of fascinated with what makes us laugh and why. More generally, it’s just creating those moments of connection between people and the audience.”
Minkoff and Bellour Married in 2009
After being set up by mutual friends, Minkoff and Bellour dated long distance before eventually settling in New York. The pair had two weddings — one in New York’s City Hall and another in Tuscany, Italy, both in July 2009.
“We did a lot of things twice. We had two engagement parties, I had two bachelorette parties, so I guess it was fitting that we had two ceremonies, as well,” Minkoff told New York Magazine a couple of months after their weddings.
Their Tuscany wedding, as covered by Glamour, was a lavish affair. Minkoff wore a Dolce & Gabanna mini dress and celebrated in a 400-year-old villa. Fellow celebrity Scientologists Danny Masterson and his then-fiancee Bijou Phillips were among the guests.
They Share Four Children
The couple welcomed their first son, Luca, in 2010. Three years later, Minkoff gave birth to their daughter, Bowie. A second son, Nico, was born in 2019 and their fourth child, Leonardo, was born in January 2023.
“Gavin and I are overjoyed to welcome our 4th child to the world,” Minkoff told People in a statement. “Leo entered the world as a peaceful and calm being. Our family is complete!”
Is Minkoff’s Husband a Scientologist?
It is unclear whether Ballour is a member of the Church of Scientology. Minkoff first spoke about being a Scientologist in a 2021 New York Times profile.
“I think there’s a lot of confusion when people hear the word ‘religion’ — immediately you hear that I pray to L. Ron Hubbard,” she said. “I study it, I take classes and that’s the extent of it, and it’s helped me stay centered. I don’t have all the answers. When I needed someone, it was a place for me to go get some answers.”
She elaborated further in a Nov. 12 episode of RHONY, telling cast member Erin Lichy that she identifies as both Jewish and a Scientologist. “Being Jewish is my religion, obviously, and the other one is really an applied philosophy,” she said. “When it gets rough that’s where I can get tools to help me with communication, with the stresses of life, dealing with kids, a business.”
Before you go, click here to see celebrities who have left the Church of Scientology.
