Tom Schwartz Defends Brittany Cartwright From Jax Taylor: "Her Heart's F--king Broken"

The Vanderpump Rules alum gave Jax Taylor some sage advice amidst his divorce.

When Jax Taylor's 30-day rehab stint ended on The Valley, his and Brittany Cartwright’s long road to reaching a divorce settlement had only just begun. As he dealt with the logistics of moving out of their family home, Tom Schwartz offered him some tough love.

At that point, as seen on Season 2, Episode 10, Jax had only been out of treatment for two days, but hadn't talked to Brittany, who had him "blocked on everything," as he put it, nor had he seen their 4-year-old son, Cruz. That was on his mind when Jason Caperna relayed his estranged wife's instructions to log out of and delete their home security camera app and leave his keys before vacating the home with his belongings, most of which she and her friends had packed in garbage bags.

"Not until I see Cruz," he fired back, prompting Schwartz to label his response as "hostile" and unproductive. Instead, Jax's new neighbor advised him to "just say, 'Yes, anything you want. Done.'"

Tom Schwartz defends Brittany Cartwright

Still, Jax couldn't quite get past the fact that his moving out didn't seem to "bother her at all."

Schwartz's take?

"Dude, her heart's f–king broken," he said, before adding, "I know there's a little, tiny part of her that still loves you, but you've made it — " (That's when Jax cut off the Vanderpump Rules alum to take issue with his use of the "little, tiny" descriptor.)

Even so, Jax expressed his hope that he and Brittany could be "good friends, over time," using Schwartz and ex-wife Katie Maloney's amicable split as his ideal scenario.

"That all depends on how you handle yourself for the next, like, six months, year," Schwartz replied. "Dude, that's so attainable. Just, you just can't go back to reptilian brain Jax."

Tom Schwartz attends the 2025 LA Art Show Opening Night Premiere Party hosted by Jenna Dewan at Los Angeles Convention Center on February 19, 2025 in Los Angeles, California; Brittany Cartwright attends the 6th Annual Daytime Beauty Awards at Autry Museum of the American West on September 30, 2024 in Los Angeles, California; Jax Taylor poses for a picture during the Vander Brunch at Good Co. on June 22, 2024 in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Photo: Emma McIntyre/WireImage; Robin L Marshall/Getty Images; Andrew Chin/Getty Images

How Tom Schwartz supported Jax Taylor amid his divorce

Later in The Valley's June 17 episode, Schwartz was helping Jax settle into his adjacent North Hollywood condo, as the two reminisced about their friendship's long history and reflected on their bond. 

Noting that he was "trying to rebuild" himself post-rehab, Jax said in a confessional, "I need somebody there to talk to, to lean on. And I can't think of a better person other than Tom Schwartz to do that. I mean, he's my best friend."

Then, a process server unexpectedly delivered divorce papers to his new home. Luckily for Jax, Schwartz was there to help decipher the paperwork, too, reassuring him, "Dude, this is great. … In terms of, like, divorce, that's a love letter."

As Schwartz bluntly put it, "You're both great people, but you're in different places in your life. You no longer bring out the best in each other. In your instance, you might bring out the worst. I hate to say it."

Before Jax had time to process Brittany's filing, the news went public. After Schwartz suggested he not open Instagram or "look at the comments," Jax responded, "Thank god you're here, man. I appreciate you being here because, I'll tell ya what, if I didn't have people, I … I would not be in a good place."