Nicole 'Snooki' Polizzi Shares How Messyness Will Honor Late Star Teddy Ray in Season 2

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The Messyness crew is entering a new season without one of its own.

Ahead of the MTV show's season 2 premiere on Thursday, star Teddy Ray unexpectedly died in August at 32. It was later reported that he died of an apparent drowning.

Teasing the upcoming season exclusively to PEOPLE, Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi admits that it will be "bittersweet."

"It's going to be bittersweet this season because we lost Teddy," Polizzi, 34, says while promoting her new Cheez-It collaboration. "Teddy passed away. He was literally the heart of the show. Such a good guy and I feel like his career was really taking off and he was so excited. It's a tragic, tragic, accident."

Polizzi says the show plans to honor Ray and his legacy.

"Obviously, we were going to dedicate the season to Teddy," she explains. "It's going to be bittersweet and I'm actually really glad that we have those moments with him because his family and friends can see him. I'm really excited for season two to air."

RELATED: Teddy Ray, Comedian, HBO Max's Pause with Sam Jay Star Dead at 32

Amy Sussman/Getty Nicole "Snooki" Polizzi

Messyness, a spin-off of Ridiculousness, premiered on MTV in August 2021. Tori Spelling and Adam Rippon are also a part of the series, which showcases viral mishaps of young adults across the internet.

Being on the show is fitting for Polizzi, who has had her fair share of Messyness-esque moments on Jersey Shore and Jersey Shore: Family Vacation over the years. She, therefore, can relate to the mishaps that those featured on Messyness endure.

"I mean, even now, the last episode [of Jersey Shore: Family Vacation] I was falling down wasted," she jokes.

"This season was so much fun," she continues. "I just feel like we knew the groove already. We knew exactly what we were doing. We were drinking Messy Mawma wine. We had it on set, so we had a ton of that and it was a girl's night."

Polizzi has become a reality television icon over the years, even expanding her reach outside of the Jersey Shore franchise with appearances on other reality shows, including Dancing With the Stars. So when the time came to pick stars to appear on Cheez-It's reality TV collector's cheddition box, Polizzi — as well as RuPaul — were at the top of the brand's list.

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"Cheez-It is celebrating their 30 years of reality and I was so excited because Cheez-It is my favorite snack. My kids love it," she says. "There's always a couple boxes in the pantry. So they were like, 'Listen, we're celebrating reality. Would you like to be on the box?' And I'm like, 'Yes. Are you kidding?'"

Continuing, she adds: "So I got the box, the 100% real original and I'm on the box and my kids think I'm so cool. They just can't wait to show their friends because my kids love Cheez-Its. So they're like, 'Mom, there's no way you're on the box.' It's literally all in my pantry, in my kitchen. I'm showcasing it. I'm really proud. I'm excited."

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Season 2 of Messyness premieres Thursday at 9 p.m. ET on MTV.