As moviegoers soak in the drama and fashion of “House of Gucci,” some of the real-life players connected to the story are speaking out, including the former American girlfriend of Maurizio Gucci, who ran the iconic Italian fashion house until his murder in 1995.
Sheree Loud, who dated Gucci for five years before he ended his marriage with Patrizia Reggiani, explains in a Friday episode of “Dateline NBC” entitled “Murder in the House of Gucci” that Reggiani “was unkind” and “always” insulted Gucci.
“He said he didn’t love her anymore,” she said in her first broadcast interview. “He said he just had had enough.”
Reggiani set up Gucci’s murder in 1995, one year after their rocky divorce. He was gunned down by a hired hitman as he arrived for work at his Milan office in March of that year. Reggiani was then convicted of orchestrating the murder three years later and sentenced to 29 years in prison, 18 of which she served before her release in 2016. She’s played by Lady Gaga in “House of Gucci,” which hit theaters Thanksgiving week. Adam Driver plays her famous slain husband
Reggiani and Gucci’s infamous relationship was ridden with jealousy as Gucci was known to step out on the marriage with multiple mistresses, not just Loud. But Reggiani’s former confidante and psychic pal Pina Auriemma, who was convicted of helping her set up her ex-husband’s murder, explains that wasn’t the only reason for her rage. In an exclusive interview featured on Friday’s program, she claims that Reggiani wasn’t just jealous but bitter over losing the power of the Gucci name during the divorce.
“She was more sad and sorry about losing her name,” she explains.
She also said that she didn’t introduce her friend to the hitman and his accomplice with the intention of murder; rather, she claimed that she felt the men could make some money off her stubborn friend.
Auriemma was sentenced to 25 years while Benedetto Ceraulo, the hitman, was handed a life sentence. Orazio Cicala, the getaway driver, received 29 years behind bars.
Friday’s special comes on the heels of Gucci heirs expressing their disdain for “House of Gucci,” saying in a statement obtained by the Associated Press that the film is “anything but accurate.”
“The film’s production did not bother to consult the heirs before describing Aldo Gucci – president of the company for 30 years – and the members of the Gucci family as thugs who were ignorant and insensitive to the world around them, attributing entirely fabricated attitudes and conduct to the protagonists of the notorious events,” the family’s statement reads.
The Gucci heirs are no longer actively involved in Gucci fashion house as Maurizio Gucci sold his remaining stake to the Bahrain-based company in 1993. It is now owned by the French luxury goods company Kering.
“House of Gucci” director Ridley Scott reacted to criticisms of the Gucci family, calling their complaints “alarmingly insulting,” Insider reports. Last week, he hit back after Patrizia Gucci’, daughter of Paolo Gucci, told the Associated Press that filmmakers were “stealing the identity of a family to make a profit. ”
“You have to remember that one Gucci was murdered and another went to jail for tax evasion, so you can’t be talking to me about making a profit,” Scott told BBC Radio. “As soon as you do that, you become part of the public domain.”
“Murder in the House of Gucci” airs on NBC on Friday at 9 p.m. EST.