There's no doubt that the women of The Real Housewives franchise are living large, but
while fans may think these ladies have it all, there's a price to pay.
These reality stars reportedly have to follow rules, both spoken and unspoken, if they want
to stay in good standing on the show.
Fans got a peek at The Real Housewives of Orange County star Tamra Barney Judge's legal
contract with Bravo, and it looks like these ladies practically have to sign their life
away.
The document, obtained by Radar Online in 2013, stated:
"My appearance, depiction, and portrayal in connection with the Series, and my actions
and the actions of others in connection with the Series, may be disparaging, defamatory,
embarrassing or of an otherwise unfavorable nature, may expose me to public ridicule,
humiliation or condemnation, and may portray me in a false light."
Unfortunately for Judge, those negative consequences appeared to affect her dramatically; according
to Radar Online.
In a since-deleted 2014 post on her Facebook page, she claimed Bravo set her up so that
she'd have to bail on a friend's birthday party at the last minute and also edited scenes
to make her relationship with Shannon Beador look worse than it was.
"Somehow it becomes Kelly telling Shannon…"
"All these horrible things."
"...that Tamra says s--- about me all the time."
Later, when a fan commented on Twitter that Judge must not care anymore about getting
fired, the former reality star responded:
"I don't.
I refuse to be made out to be this person they are making me.
No amount of [money] is worth it."
Some Housewives' contracts reportedly state they can't sue their castmates.
Carole Radziwill of The Real Housewives of New York City told BuzzFeed that she didn't
sue co-star Aviva Drescher for telling everyone she used a ghostwriter because she'd have
to, quote, "break the Bravo contract" to do so.
Lisa Rinna of The Real Housewives of Orange County admitted the same kind of thing.
When a fan on Twitter joked that Lisa Vanderpump might sue her, Rinna replied,
"We [can't] sue each other FYI."
This rule may not apply to lawsuits lobbed against cast members from other cities, because
who could forget that time when The Real Housewives of Miami star Joanna Krupa hit Brandi Glanville
of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills with a lawsuit for defamation after Glanville claimed
publicly that Krupa had, well, hygiene issues.
The two settled out of court, but it cost Glanville.
Executive Producer Andy Cohen revealed,
"I feel terrible about that because it wound up costing Brandi Glanville hundreds of thousands
of dollars.
Brandi is unfiltered, for better or for worse.
I'm sure that she's learned her lesson, but I did feel bad that that resulted in her having
to pay so much money in legal fees."
Everyone watches Real Housewives for the drama, so if you get paid to be on the show, you
better bring it!
However, it seems that giving the viewers a healthy dose of dirt is only part of the
equation for reality show success.
One anonymous producer told Business Insider that any wifey who doesn't fight for screen
time basically gives up control of her storyline.
The producer explained,
"One thing I like to tell my casts sometimes is, 'Look, I want you to have a story and
if so-and-so is showing up for more scenes, they're going to naturally get more screen
time, and they're going to tell your story and you'll have less of a voice to tell your
story.
It's better to be present and show up and have some screen time."
It seems like Yolanda Hadid of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills definitely got that memo,
considering she once showed up to a restaurant shoot without makeup while suffering from,
quote, "earth-pulling exhaustion" due to Lyme disease, according to E! News.
Hadid reportedly wrote in her 2017 memoir, Believe Me, that she had to lay down in the
backseat of a vehicle to conserve her energy until the crew was ready for her on set.
It's pretty sad when that option seems better than letting your castmates talk behind your
back!
Ever notice that the Real Housewives never get a makeover or dramatically change their
look while the show is taping, but often show up with a brand new hairdo on the reunion
show?
There's a reason for that.
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills stars revealed on Bravo that they have to keep their
look consistent because the individual cast member interviews take place across several
shoots.
"We had to use a screenshot, which is basically just a picture of how you looked on TV during
your last interview, and then you have to match the makeup and the hair according to
that."
Vicki Gunvalson of The Real Housewives of Orange County also spoke about the process,
telling Glamour,
"You wear the same outfit all year long.
You get three looks [total].
But for three months, you have to wear the exact same outfit, same hair, same makeup.
You can never cut your hair in the middle of it because you're supposed to look the
same."
"I need to have fashion, fashion, fashion, fashion oozing out of me."
If you manage to get cast on The Real Housewives, don't even think about holding back.
During The Real Housewives of New York Season 5 reunion, Aviva Drescher claimed the show's
producers scolded her about apologizing for a harsh comment.
She told the New York Post,
"The producers said, 'We don't want our characters to be self-censoring.
We want them to be themselves,' [meaning] wild and dramatic."
Casting director Melissa Stanforth, who worked on at least three Real Housewives franchises,
also told the Post that when she met with potential cast members, she didn't want to
hear that anything was off-limits.
She explained,
"I always ask people what's off the table.
[If they] say, 'This, this, this and that,' I say, 'You shouldn't be on reality TV.'"
"Take that and shove it up your ass, how's that?"
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