'Real L Word': backlash over Nikki, Jill's wedding, rings, weight

There's an old saying that a woman can never be too rich or too thin. Unless you're a lesbian on "The Real L Word."

Over breakfast in West Hollywood, Nikki Weiss and Jill Sloane Goldstein, two of the stars of Showtime's sexy new reality show, talked to The Dish Rag about criticism of their upcoming wedding, their yellow diamond engagement bling, their weight and those cruel anorexia rumors. 

"They have totally ripped me apart," says a naturally svelte Nikki, of the eating disorder accusations she's received on certain blogs. "And that is so painful because I have the opposite problem. I eat all the time and I can't gain weight. If I do aerobic exercise, I lose weight, so I lift weights to get some muscle mass. Why criticize anyone's size or body type?"

"You become very vulnerable when you invite people into your home for a reality TV show. You set yourself up to be judged, which is certainly happening," explains Jill. "It's amazing how quickly people are to jump and judge you."

They want fans of the show to know that they aren't "rich bitches." "I have worked my ass off in this business," says Nikki, a talent rep for TV and film. "I have a modest home, not too far from here, which I worked hard to pay for."

But after a New York Times TV writer wrote that the couple shared a ring "borrowed from a Jackie Collins novel," Nikki fired back.

"I was utterly offended and I wrote her that we own two rings, bought and paid for by very successful careers," says Nikki. "If I was a man, would there have been a question about the cost of the rings? It's such a double standard. If you work hard and are a good person, what's wrong with rewarding yourself with nice things?"

She's got a point. Do you ever hear criticism of the cost of an engagement ring when it's given by a man to a woman? We never have. In fact, a cheap ring is held up to ridicule and the man who gives a bargain bauble is not considered a good catch.

As for the cost of their upcoming wedding, "We are not having a lavish wedding," says Nikki. "It's for eighty people."

But there are issues: two gowns vs a pantsuit, etc. The event will take place in October and will definitely not be filmed and/or paid for by anyone other than the happy couple. "It's our day," says Nikki, as Jill nods.

Jill understands that it's probably necessary that they be typecast a certain way with a story angle that makes people feel strongly about them. "You either love us hate us on the blogs. Its just too bad that the inclination is not to celebrate women and all their beautiful differences and their hard-earned successes."

And there have been upsides to the "Real L Word" experience.

"One really cool thing is that we will be able to show our children our wedding planning," says Nikki. Jill adds, "And when we listen to each other doing the testimonials, you hear things that make you fall in love with each other all over again. There are a lot of high points."

But there are also low ones. Jill, a writer by trade, admits, "We don't want to be famous. Our intentions are so honest in just wanting to tell a story about two very normal women in love."

But they do get along great with the other lesbians on the show -- Mikey, the tough fashion show producer, Rose, real estate/party girl, Tracy, an entertainment exec, Whitney, the tattooed FX artist. Although their storylines don't overlap, they get together to commiserate and laugh about viewer reactions to the show.

"All these girls are like sisters to us. We have a common bond and we are very close," says Jill. "We do talk about what it feels like to be so attacked. We've all decided 'Oh, screw it. Hopefully, they're still watching.'"

Watch their live chat after the show's second episode airs on Sunday (June 27)

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Photo credit: Showtime