“Really, I’m just sad, you know, about the negative impact it’s had on our business,” he told TMZ in a March 11 interview. “But I think cooler heads will prevail and I’m just gonna keep on keeping on.”

As for how his best friend and business partner is holding up?

“He’s OK, I think. He has a sense of profound sadness, rightfully so,” Tom Schwartz continued. “I think he feels like a piece of s–t and to some extent, maybe he is. He knows he f–ked up and the whole thing is just really sad.”

And although Tom Schwartz hasn’t spoken to Raquel since the scandal hit, the 40-year-old urged viewers to stay tuned to the current season to see how it all unfolds.

“You’ll see it play out on the show,” he said, before noting, “It’s f–king complicated. That’s the understatement of the year.”