Olivia Jade Giannulli ‘fully knew what her parents did to get her into USC’

The Women's Cancer Research Fund 'An Unforgettable Evening'

I still don’t understand Olivia Jade Giannulli’s whole deal. She could have leaned into her scandalous situation and signed on for her own reality show. She could have parlayed her college-admissions scandal into more sponsorship deals. She could have been doing interviews and tried to brand herself as a pretty party girl. Instead, she went dark, partied in private, refused to update her social media and reportedly moved out of her parents’ home. In the past few weeks, we’ve learned that she broke up with her boyfriend – she was living with him, I think – and apparently she really wants to go back to college:

“Olivia Jade wants to go back to USC,” a source told Us. “She didn’t get officially kicked out and she is begging the school to let her back in.”

Unfortunately for Giannulli, 19, she’s unlikely to get her wish anytime soon. “She knows they won’t let her in, so she’s hoping this info gets out,” a separate insider explained. “She wants to come out looking like she’s changed, learned life lessons and is growing as a person, so she for sure wants people to think she is interested in her education.”

[From Us Weekly]

What is this PR play? I’ve said this before, but the biggest problem for this family is that they don’t understand their brand. They think they’re super-A-list and that they can fuss around and fix their image by looking churchy and scholarly and like they’re being victimized for being so famous. The reality of their “brand” is that the mother is a disgraced C-list Hallmark Channel princess and the daughters are reality show trash without a reality show. Speaking of, Olivia totally knew that her parents were scamming her into college. Of course she did.

Not a surprise. Olivia Jade Giannulli was well aware of her mom, Lori Loughlin, and dad Mossimo Giannulli’s actions ahead of them being named and charged in the headline-making, nationwide college admissions scandal.

“Olivia fully knew what her parents did to get her into USC, but didn’t think there was anything wrong with it,” an insider tells Us Weekly. “She didn’t get into any other California schools.”

Loughlin, 54, and Mossimo, 55, were arrested for their involvement in the scam in March, which saw them charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services fraud. The couple — who wed in 1997 — allegedly paid $500,000 in bribes to get Olivia, 19, and their other daughter, Bella, 20, accepted to the prestigious University of Southern California by labeling them as members of the crew team, a sport they never even played.

[From Us Weekly]

We been knew – she obviously posed for those photos, and she didn’t do ANY of the work to get into college. Chica didn’t even fill out her own college application. But remember, she wants to go back to USC, and even if they don’t let her back in, she hopes you think that she has “changed,” people.

The Women's Cancer Research Fund 'An Unforgettable Evening'

Photos courtesy of WENN.

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.

67 Responses to “Olivia Jade Giannulli ‘fully knew what her parents did to get her into USC’”

Comments are Closed

We close comments on older posts to fight comment spam.

  1. LaraK says:

    You can’t have a good PR strategy if you don’t uunderstand your image. These people are going from one disaster to another

    • Desolee says:

      Lori seems to not only not understand her image but seriously be misjudging how a not guilty plea will end up.

    • Elizabeth1992 says:

      At least USC understands ITS image. That is why there is no way Olivia Jade is getting (back) in to their school. Time for USC to do some damage control.

      • Swack says:

        Especially since she admitted she knew what her parents did. And she is just as clueless as her parents are.

  2. Eyeroll says:

    She could always reapply to some other school if she really wants her degree. Not sure fraudulently earned credits can transfer, but it’s worth a shot if she’s sincere. But yeah it’s obvious most of these kids knew. The ones who might not know are the ones who actually tried and the parents did the rest or think the basic donation got them in. From the get, it was obvious she didn’t try. This family is a mess and I hope the parents get their due punishment. It would also help if they didn’t act like victims for 5 minutes, but clearly that’s a lot to ask.

    • Jane says:

      Once you’ve been found committing fraud in your college applications, it’s pretty much impossible to get into another school. They do ask in most applications if you ever been kicked out and stuff. Plus she’s famous, so they will automatically know. Fame is her only way forward now. Unless the community college have an agreement with the state that they must accept any graduating high school student, but since she will be applying as a transfer, not sure how that will work

      • lucy2 says:

        Good. She clearly has no interest in education, and wherever she goes would deprive someone else of a spot, so I hope she just fades away to a life of youtube or whatever.

      • trh says:

        Infamy is her only way.

  3. Aims says:

    The Apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

    • minx says:

      These people are unreal. They have botched both the legal and PR strategies from the beginning. Privileged twits.

  4. xdanix says:

    Who is leaking this stuff? Is it supposed to be her or someone on her “side” leaking for her? They can’t honestly think it makes her look BETTER, can they?!

    And also, does this not increase her chances of getting in trouble with the law herself- or at the very least of having to testify against her parents?

    • adastraperaspera says:

      I really hope she is forced to testify under oath, so her lies can be charged as perjury.

      • (TheOG)@Jan90067 says:

        Thing is, with people like this, real Trumpets, they don’t care about the words “under oath”. They will lie at every opportunity to make themselves look “better”, to be “more than”; lies are like breathing. This twit is NOTHING w/out mommy and daddy’s money and names. Who would’ve looked twice at her? Pretty girls, esp. in LA, are literally a dime a dozen. She’s not done *anything* on her own to warrant attention. Wouldn’t be at *all* surprised this tw@t thinks she should be allowed back because she “wants” it.

  5. Jerusha says:

    Entitled brat.

    • (TheOG)@Jan90067 says:

      She truly is. Thing is, while I do think she’s a spoiled twit, it’s like having a puppy that piddles all over. People yell at the pup, get mad at the pup, but it’s the OWNERS’ FAULT for not teaching the pup to piddle outside. While this girl is as dumb as a box of hair, it IS her parents’ fault for not teaching her values and morals, teaching by example, etc.

      • Snazzy says:

        For sure, but she’s a grown woman who should be able to make her own choice (right vs wrong and all that). My mom is a lying, narsasistic manipulative, psychologically abusive b***h who lies and only cares about money’s and while I grew up in that environment I promise you am not that. Why? Adult makes choices.

      • stephanie says:

        Snazzy has a point .My father is also a full blown abusive and ragefull narc. While I certainly carry some baggage from my childhood, my moral compass is firmly intact. In fact, I swing so far to the other side I often give to my own detriment and have a tendency to be codependent – not cruel. Not healthy either but I’m nothing like my father and he is a living breathing example of the type of person I don’t want to be.

        Perhaps Olivia Jade is a perfect example of the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree.

  6. Incredulous says:

    They should let her back in, milk her for the fees and then bounce her out when she fails her tests.

    • Trashaddict says:

      Please let’s offer her loans at exorbitant interest too, see if she even knows what she’s getting herself into.

  7. Megan says:

    Yep, she missed her moment. She could have wrapped this scandal up with a big fat paycheck, but she just isn’t smart enough. Obviously.

    • Jan says:

      I think she could be described with my Mom’s favorite expression “ dumb as a box of rocks”!

      • Swack says:

        or one crayon short of a full box.

      • (TheOG)@Jan90067 says:

        HA! Reminds me of a friend I had in high school, who called this stoner guy in our Spanish class “Carne con dos ojos” (meat with two eyes), because the lights were *definitely* OFF, and NO ONE ever seemed to be home! lol

  8. Krakken says:

    These people clearly did not raise a bright daughter.
    If Olivia Jade is sitting on a large bunch of highlighter pallets she might consider eating them. Then she could be pretty on the inside.

  9. frizz says:

    If she knew about this, and didn’t think she was doing anything wrong, I wonder if this is just this common and normalized thing among her peers. How many of her friends used these services?

    • Deedee says:

      That’s a good question.

    • AryasMum says:

      I’ve heard USC called the University of Spoiled Children. Not making excuses for this girl, but it’s possible her social group got into college the same way.

    • otaku fairy... says:

      They probably just mean ‘didn’t know it was wrong’ as in, ‘didn’t know it was illegal.’ She knew it was cheating.

  10. perplexed says:

    Her lawyers probably told her to be quiet.

    And maybe she has the good sense to be stressed out. I know I would be. This is humiliating for a 19 year old. She’s not a season 50-something-year-old like her mom.

  11. Enn says:

    Wouldn’t she have failed spring semester anyway by leaving school? That’s enough to get you kicked out of most colleges.

    • Dutch says:

      At most colleges you can withdraw as late as a week or two before finals and now have it impact your GPA. You lose the tuition you paid, but you aren’t on the hook for failing grades. It’s normally reserved for students who are sick or injured for a long stretch of the semester or have to deal with a situation beyond their control like a parent getting sick, etc.

  12. Mellie says:

    If she’s worried about having a college degree, then take some online classes from a local community college and STFU about it all. But, that’s not the game she’s playing…

  13. Ksweet says:

    “…a sport they never even played.” Come on, US Magazine, really? How do you “play” crew?

    And they are just doing what they see gets you ahead in this country. Do whatever it takes to get ahead: lie, cheat, steal, and when you’re caught, lie some more and play the victim. Never ever admit to wrongdoing. It’s the US playbook, and our current “president” is the master. It’s shameful and scummy, but I’m over everyone acting so shocked when it keeps happening, especially amongst the privileged, entitled ones.

    • Elizabeth1992 says:

      @ Ksweet : I cringed a llittle at the “play crew” line too! I thought it should have been “a sport they never participated in”. Yes, one does note “play” at rowing. 🙂

  14. cannibell says:

    {jaw dropped, palm against chin}

  15. Lady D says:

    I don’t understand the “she didn’t get into any other California schools” What does that mean? Did she even try to get into any other schools? Are they saying she isn’t horrible because she only scammed and cheated her way into one school?

    • Tiffany says:

      Applying for state schools in CA is ultra competitive and very tough. The admissions rate every year gets lower and lower. Legacies and donors are always first priority and the chips fall with everyone else.

      • (TheOG)@Jan90067 says:

        Legacies don’t exist in UCs in CA, unless it’s a private school like USC or Pepperdine. Both my sister and BIL are UC Berkley grads, and my younger nephew, with an almost perfect GPA, extra currics, community service, capt. of his HS football team, etc. STILL couldn’t get in. There is a VERY LOW acceptance rate for in-state. They want that out of state/country $$$$$ tuition.

        Now, if they had major millions to donate a new building, or fund a grant, yeah, I’m SURE he’d’ve gotten in, even with a C-/D avg.

    • Swack says:

      I took it as she applied to other schools and didn’t get in. Either way, it’s going to be hard for her to go to any major university because everything she does towards it will be taken with a grain of salt and if I were any college/university she would automatically be on probation because I wouldn’t trust her any further than I could throw her.

  16. EMc says:

    what about the people at the universities this occurred at? I’m not hearing anything about them.. or was it a quicker end for them due to not being famous?

    • Missskitttin says:

      Yes. What about the other non famous scammers? Many of them paid way more even.

    • (TheOG)@Jan90067 says:

      There’s an article stating 33 parents have been charged in the Varsity Blues scandal. We’ve only heard about these two actresses’s cases because they’re “famous”.

      https://www.cbsnews.com/news/college-admissions-scandal-list-operation-varsity-blues-every-charge-plea-accusation-facing-parents-2019-05-16/

      • Trashaddict says:

        Looking at the sheer number of fake “athletes” on that list, and guessing at how long it may have gone on, the administration at USC would have to be either complicit or stupid, not to know what was happening.

    • Lady D says:

      There is a list online of the 50 scammers. It includes their title. There are a lot of pro’s on the list, lawyers, doctors, financial players, etc. They are listed because they have all been charged. The DM runs the list occasionally with a story about these sleazy grifters.

    • Tina says:

      The only other one I’m aware of, who used to be managing partner at a New York law firm, took a plea. (As all of them who have any sense will do). They’ll still go to prison, but like Felicity Huffman, it’s best to show contrition and an acceptance of your actions. They’ll throw the book at Loughlin.

    • trh says:

      Go read the indictments, all the names are there.

  17. DP says:

    This is a prime example of how entitled rich kids really believe they are special. They think they somehow earned and deserve the privileged life they were born into. It’s absolutely the parents fault for spoiling them, but it’s their own fault if they don’t change it once they are adults!

    • AryasMum says:

      There’s a guy who researches this type of situation. When their SAT scores come back significantly higher than their practice scores, they are really impressed by themselves and actually say they want to take it again because they will probably test higher! Absolutely no self- awareness, and they internalize these scores as earned and brag about them.

  18. JRenee says:

    Just wow..

  19. 2lazy4username says:

    A for-real question: Although she was admitted on fraudulent terms, can she carry forth any earned credits to another school for work she actually did? (And let’s assume for a moment she did her own work.)

  20. SuperStef says:

    I hope she’s charged with accessory to the crime since she knew what her parents were doing. I don’t think the kids should get to walk away if they knew what was going on.

  21. Emily says:

    I don’t know why young girls wear so much makeup and do all that contouring. She looks like a mid-40s housewife in the lead photo. I’m sure she’s naturally very pretty.

    • trh says:

      yes, makeup is completely out of hand — do all the makeup artists study for a year in Tulsa nowadays?

  22. Ashley says:

    I wonder who Moss and Becky will put in charge of their money while they’re in prison. Their legal bills will be quite hefty as well I’d imagine. This family is pretty much destroyed. I wonder what the extended family has to offer in terms of support for the daughters. I can’t believe they didn’t just donate the money up front and did this ridiculous, lying and cheating scam. They are so screwed. Sidebar I just read a blind about Felicity being a total B also.

  23. JennyJenny says:

    Well, can she go to Arizona now where she REALLY wanted to go to school??

  24. holly hobby says:

    Of course she wants to get back into college. That’s how she’ll get her endorsements. No one wants to give a jobless, uneducated, white girl product endorsements.

    • Angry Bird says:

      Stranger things have happened. There are PLENTY of jobless, uneducated, white girls with product endorsements.
      I hope you’re right, but stranger things have happened. That’s all I’m saying.

  25. Hope says:

    “They think they’re super-A-list and that they can fuss around and fix their image by looking churchy and scholarly and like they’re being victimized for being so famous. The reality of their “brand” is that the mother is a disgraced C-list Hallmark Channel princess and the daughters are reality show trash without a reality show.”

    LMAO – damn I love this site so much sometimes! 🙂

  26. stephanie says:

    Maybe she should go somewhere abroad where they don’t know her. If I were her, I would never be able to show my face on campus. Maybe she can take her youtube money and attend a trade school or go eat pray love her way through europe or start a company where she isnt the face of the company – though I doubt she could stand a job where she isn’t front and center or life out of the public eye.

  27. Angry Bird says:

    We are doomed.

  28. Clementine says:

    LMFAO, do you actually think she did HER OWN WORK @ USC?

  29. Weslyn says:

    I recommend the podcast “Gangsta Capitalism” for a breakdown of everything and some actual, extra-cringey transcripts of conversations between some of the parents and Rick Singer.

  30. Angry Bird says:

    I’d love to line them all up and slap them repeatedly

  31. VeryVeryTerryJerry says:

    Basically just a kid and hardly has any nose left. Speaks volumes about priorities, doesn’t it?