Mary Jo Eustace Says Drama Around Ex-Husband Dean McDermott's Divorce from Tori Spelling Is 'Pathetic' (Exclusive)

"The same drama, the same plea for press," Eustace, who split from McDermott in 2006, tells PEOPLE

Mary Jo Eustace is over ex-husband Dean McDermott’s divorce drama.

Attending the Beverly Hills Rejuvenation grand opening in West Hollywood with 25-year-old son Jack McDermott on Thursday, April 25, Eustace, 61, tells PEOPLE that “it’s the same story” with Dean, whom she divorced in 2006.

“We’re really busy and we have real lives, but to me, it’s rinse, lather and repeat,” the podcast host says of the media attention the actor’s split from Tori Spelling has garnered. “The same drama, the same plea for press, and it’s pathetic. And we’ve worked really hard to get away from it.”

The former cooking show host says she and her two kids — Jack and Lola Eustace, 19 — choose to keep their distance from “all the nonsense” on social media.

“People reach out to you and they send you stuff, and I just say, ‘We're not interested.’ And my son's chosen to go his own way, and so is my daughter. There's a whole story behind that,” Eustace says. “Because it's been 20 years of it, we're used to it. But no, I don't ever go looking for it, ever.”

Related: Tori Spelling Claims Mary Jo Eustace's Daughter Lola, 17, Is Now Living with Her and Dean McDermott

Spelling filed for divorce from Dean on March 29 after 18 years of marriage, citing irreconcilable differences. Per court documents obtained by PEOPLE at the time, their official date of separation was listed as June 17, 2023 — the same day Dean posted a since-deleted Instagram announcement revealing the couple had parted ways to “start a new journey.”

The Beverly Hills, 90210 alum requested sole physical custody of the pair’s five children — Liam Aaron McDermott, 17, Stella Doreen, 15, Hattie Margaret, 12, Finn Davey, 11 and Beau Dean, 7 —  and joint legal custody with Dean, with visitation rights to be determined.

In the aftermath of the divorce news, Spelling has publicly divulged the details of the pair's marital woes and eventual separation on her misSPELLING podcast.

Related: Tori Spelling and Dean McDermott's Relationship Timeline

"I've never felt more alone," Spelling said on her podcast's debut episode. "I don’t feel worth loving. That’s the truth. And that’s something that’s just in you, it’s not something I wanted or created. That starts when you’re young. [And changing it], that's not easy to do. ... I don't know if you can."

Spelling noted that she wanted to file for divorce for "like... 15 years." However, she ultimately held back from doing so because she wanted to "protect" Dean from hurt and shield their children.

"We always say, ‘Hey, it made it 18 years. It shouldn’t have made it 18 years,'" she continued. "And I think he would say the same thing if he and I had a real heart-to-heart. It would have been over a lot sooner."

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Spelling's debut episode also featured her addressing the "red flags" she saw in her marriage and the "dig" Dean made during a fight before their breakup. She's since spoken out about why she remained in the marriage "longer" than intended and revealed she isn't opposed to getting married again someday.

As for Dean, the Canadian star indicated he's doing "good" amid the divorce. "It's been a long time coming but T and I are good," he added, per a video obtained by the Daily Mail on April 1.

Dean has also shared encouraging posts about sobriety, which Spelling liked.

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