Love was already in the air when Ariana Biermann and Liam Obergfoll met on Next Gen NYC.
Newly single following her breakup from longtime boyfriend and castmate Hudson McLeroy, Ariana instantly caught newcomer Liam’s eye at the beginning of Season 2 (streaming on Peacock), and the two began exploring a potential romance shortly afterward.
Read on for details on Ariana and Liam’s budding relationship, so far, on Next Gen NYC Season 2.
When did Ariana Biermann and Liam Obergfoll meet?
Gia Giudice introduced Liam to Ariana during Emira D’Spain’s birthday bash (which also happened to fall on The Real Housewives of Atlanta daughter’s actual birthday) in the Next Gen NYC Season 2 premiere. The party took place in October 2025.
Liam Obergfoll reveals his first impression of Ariana Biermann
After the two exchanged pleasantries, Liam coyly offered in a confessional, “She’s cute.”
A bit later, Liam was sitting next to Ariana in a booth when she shared with him, several of their castmates, and others, that she was on probation for an alleged DUI at the time. The two compared notes on the advice their fathers had given them, should they ever find themselves in that situation with police. When a producer asked Liam how he felt about Ariana’s probation, he replied with a grin, “I think it’s pretty hot.”
Hudson McLeroy reacts to Liam Obergfoll’s attraction to Ariana Biermann
Hudson was also in attendance at Emira’s party and quickly noticed how closely Hudson was sitting next to Ariana. After he shared his observation with Charlie Zakkour, the latter encouraged him to “saying something” to Liam.
“This Liam kid, I don’t really know who he is,” Hudson explained in a producer interview. “But Liam has decided to flirt with Ariana. So, he can do whatever the hell he wants to; he’s a grown man. But he’s gonna have to hear something from me eventually.”
Hudson McLeroy issues Liam Obergfoll a warning about dating Ariana Biermann
Having already predicted that he and Ariana would “get back together” eventually, Hudson didn’t wait long to seize the opportunity to talk to Liam. A flashback shown in Episode 2 revealed exactly what was said during a previously unaired moment from Emira’s birthday bash.
After introducing himself to Liam and explaining he was newly “separated” from Ariana, Hudson told the Season 2 newbie, “I am gonna go into some boundaries.” Liam, for his part, responded by insisting that he “was not trying to step on [his] toes,” prompting Hudson to reply, “Bro, I am not a dick, dude. Like, that’s not who I am.”‘
Outside Emira’s after-party, Liam recapped his “crazy” talk with Hudson for pal Brooks Marks. “Do you think he was, like, intimidated?” Liam asked. “It almost felt like he was trying to control her decision.”
Eventually, Ariana confessed to a producer that Brooks had already filled her in on Hudson’s conversation with Liam. “I am aware, from a little birdie, that Hudson has put some “boundaries” with Liam about me,” she said. “Knowing that now, I’m especially gonna go hang out with Liam.” Ariana sounded giddy, though, when she added, “I did hear he said I was cute.”
Ariana Biermann gushes over “amazing” Liam Obergfoll
Despite Hudson’s declaration that Ariana was off-limits, Liam was prepared to cross the line, by the time Season 2, Episode 3 rolled around. “I am definitely attracted to Ariana,” he revealed to a producer. “I definitely think she’s beautiful and I just want to get to know her.”
To accomplish that goal, Liam recruited Shai Fruchter and his longtime friend Kendall White to join him and Ariana at a lawn game-themed bar. As the group played an oversized version of beer pong together, Shai and Kendall clocked that Liam wasn’t even trying to hide the fact that the was heavily flirting with Ariana.
While outwardly declaring his romantic intentions, Liam remarked in a confessional, “Ariana’s got this immediate presence. She brings this vibe. Yeah, f–k that boundary.”
The attraction appeared to be mutual, too. “I think Liam’s amazing,” Ariana added in a separate producer interview, as the lawn game scene played out. “He has 800 hobbies. He doesn’t like to stay in the house. He rides a motorcycle.”
During a girls’ night debrief later on, she also shared, “We had a great time. He’s really cool.”
What to Know About Next Gen NYC Season 2
Next Gen NYC Season 2 is officially underway, and the New York City-based friend group is facing more pressure than ever. New episodes air Tuesdays at 9 p.m. ET/PT on Bravo and stream the next day on Peacock.
Season 2 of Next Gen NYC follows returning cast members Ariana Biermann, Riley Burruss, Emira D’Spain, Brooks Marks, Ava Dash, Gia Giudice, Georgia McCann, Charlie Zakkour, Shai Fruchter, and Hudson McLeroy, along with new additions Rowan Henchy, Liam Obergfoll, and Kendall White.
As for what’s to come, Next Gen NYC fans can expect to see Ariana caught in a complicated love triangle involving Charlie and Liam amid her recent split from ex-boyfriend Hudson; Georgia feuding with both Charlie and Riley; and Brooks once again getting pulled into more friend-group drama. Add in messy breakups, shifting alliances, career moves, and plenty of tension, and Season 2 is shaping up to be the one one for the books.
Want even more Next Gen NYC? Watch the Next Gen NYC After Show. New episodes drop every Wednesday at 10/9c on BravoTV.com and on YouTube, with episodes available on Peacock the following day.
Ariana Biermann questions if Liam Obergfoll is “friend zoning” her
By the end of their meetup with Shai and Kendall, Liam had even convinced Ariana to make a deal with him: If he came over to her new Brooklyn apartment and assembled her closet organizer, she would repay him by going for a ride on the back of his motorcycle. They tackled phase one of their agreement in Season 2, Episode 4.
“I honestly really hit it off with Liam,” Ariana gushed in a confessional. “I always said I wanted a handyman, and Liam’s being really handy. In all honesty, I’m not really thinking about the closet right now.”
On the Next Gen NYC After Show, Ariana and Liam both admitted that romance was lacking amid this particular get-together, however. In fact, Ariana had even questioned if Liam was “friend-zoning” her. “Because Liam is so friendly and, like, so fun with everybody, like, I don’t know if he’s building this closet, though, as a friend thing, or if he’s, like, pulling a move, she said. “I learned quickly he was not friend-zoning me. It was a short-lived thought.”
Similarly, Liam detailed how, initially, Ariana “was in the other room” and left him to begin assembling the shelving unit by himself. She was just baking a snack for him, though, and he eventually dialed up the flirting. “Why wouldn’t I be flirting? I’m not just here to build a f–kin’ closet, duh,” Liam joked on the After Show. “It’s a move in my sense of, like, I’m gonna offer to help you any way I can. I’m good with my hands, most people say.”
Liam Obergfoll invites Ariana Biermann to meet his family
Mid-assembly, Ariana and Liam took a break to enjoy the pumpkin-banana bread that she had just baked for them. That’s when Liam took the opportunity to invite Ariana to his upcoming birthday celebration at his parents’ Upper West Side home.
“Am I jumping the gun on inviting her to a family dinner and to meet my family? Yeah, maybe I am,” Liam conceded to a producer. Ariana, for her part, weighed in, “I’m going to go meet his whole family, and we haven’t gone on a date. I’m nervous as s–t.”
The birthday dinner went so well that Liam also invited Ariana to his family’s Thanksgiving celebration, which played out off camera in Episode 9. In a voiceover, Emira revealed that Liam’s family “absolutely adores” Ariana.
Bravo Fan Fest 2026: What to Know
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Ariana Biermann refers to Liam Obergfoll as her “dream man”
After meeting Liam’s family at his birthday dinner, Ariana made good on her deal to take a ride on his motorcycle in Episode 7. In a confessional, she said they’d “really hit it off” and were talking “all the time,” at that point. Ariana further admitted to a producer mid-filming, “I really like him.”
Shortly afterward, Liam surprised Ariana with her own pair of ice skates just before their romantic date at a rink in Brooklyn’s Prospect Park. Sitting on a bench together post-skating, Ariana predicted that her mom, Kim Zolciak, would “really like” Liam, before revealing that she’d already sent her a photo of him.
When Ariana jetted off to Las Vegas for BravoCon 2025 in the same Aug. 5 episode, Liam surprised her again by having a case of water, flowers, and chocolates, delivered to her hotel room, along with a note promising to treat her to “dinner and wine” upon her return to NYC. “The Lord sent me my dream man,” Ariana remarked after a producer confirmed that Liam had actually arranged the gift on his own.
Back in New York, Liam, for his part, confessed to some of his friends that he was “smitten,” after going on “two or three dates” with Ariana.
Ariana Biermann and Liam Obergfoll reveal they took a big step in their romance
At the beginning of Episode 9, Ariana established that she and Liam were “not dating,” at least not in an official sense. “We’re going on dates. We’re, like, figuring it out,” she explained. When Ava asked if she and Liam had “hooked up” yet, Ariana said that they’d only “made out.” That seemed to change throughout the course of the episode, however.
After Liam kissed Ariana multiple times on camera, he played coy in a producer interview, saying only, “Ariana and I have definitely gotten closer. I don’t really kiss and tell. Yeah, we’ve gotten closer. You can use your imagination.”
During a bathroom break at Gia’s Friendsgiving dinner later on, Ariana said that she “didn’t have sex” with Liam, but intimated that they had engaged in other sexual activities. That point became even more clear when she commented on Liam’s penis size in a confessional. The next morning, the two woke up in bed together, and while kissing and cuddling, Liam playfully mentioned their post-Friendsgiving “dessert,” asking Ariana, “Did you have fun last night?”
The Next Gen NYC cast reacts to Ariana Biermann and Liam Obergfoll’s romance
As Ariana and Liam’s connection grew stronger on Season 2, Episode 5, their castmates had mixed reactions. “I ship that,” Ava Dash told Brooks Marks, who responded by giving them a couple name “Li-Ana.”
However, Charlie and Shai had a different perspective. As Charlie explained to Liam, because of his recent friendship developing with Hudson, he took issue with “somebody f–king his ex-girlfriend.” Although Liam explained he wasn’t sleeping with Ariana at the time and the “goal is to get to know her,” Shai still noted he felt he “overstepped” when he played a part in setting Ariana and Liam up.
Amid the potential new romance on Next Gen NYC, get exclusive details on why Ariana and Hudson broke up during the Season 2 premiere.
