Since Bravo’s Real Housewives franchise premiered with Real Housewives of Orange County,
viewers have seen women of all different backgrounds share their ridiculously lavish
lives on our screens. However, being on a reality television show isn't for everyone,
and several women said good-bye after just one or two seasons.
Viewers met Lydia McLaughlin, a spunky mom of two during season eight
of The Real Housewives of Orange County.
McLaughlin came onto the original series to hang out with OG cast members Vicki Gunvalson and Tamra
Barney, and while there was no real drama surrounding McLaughlin and the other women,
fans did get to meet her stoner mom and watch her whoop it up with the ladies in Mexico.
However, McLaughlin only stayed on the series for one season, telling Us Weekly that her
time on the show was, quote, "bittersweet" and compared her decision to leave like,
"Breaking up with a boyfriend you know you're not going to end up with."
However, she did end up returning for one more round,
shocking fans when she appeared on the show’s twelfth season.
At the time, McLaughlin told Insider she felt,
quote, "more free with it" and more comfortable with the reality TV process.
That season, she launched a new magazine called Nobleman with her husband,
which the couple plugged with their return. McLaughlin left again after the season concluded.
Amber Marchese joined the women of The Real Housewives of New Jersey for its sixth season,
but that was all fans would see of the star and her husband, Jim Marchese.
In an interview with People, Marchese confessed that she no longer wanted to be a part of the
Bravo franchise because she felt the show did not allow the viewers to get to know her.
Instead, it showed Marchese pitted against twins Teresa Aprea and Nicole Napolitano
while she barely had a relationship with other cast members, Dina Manzo and Teresa Giudice.
Marchese admitted she and her husband made the decision together to leave the show, sharing,
"The show was not what we expected it to be, and I want to pursue more suitable endeavors."
The mom of two, who dealt with breast cancer, also said that parts of the series,
especially her feud with the women, were constructed by Bravo, saying:
"Even my relationship with the twins was created. [...] I only met with Teresa Giudice and
Dina Manzo for filming purposes. I never built a friendship with them
as we were nothing more than co-workers."
Jules Wainstein was introduced on the eighth season of The Real Housewives of New York where
she found herself opening up to the other ladies about her struggles with an eating disorder.
However, she said farewell to the show for good after only appearing on
one season. A rep for Jules told E! News that the former reality star was stepping
away from the show because she was going through a divorce and wanted to focus on her children.
Jules and Michael Wainstein split in 2016 after eight years of marriage,
with their divorce finalized in 2020, according to Page Six.
Upon leaving the series, Jules shared with Bravo's The Daily Dish,
"Overall, it was a great experience. I learned so much about myself. I learned so much about
the ladies. [...] I learned different things from each and every one of them."
Actor Denise Richards found herself hanging out with the ritzy women of Beverly Hills when
she joined Season nine of Bravo's The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. Unfortunately,
Richards would give up her big fake diamond and leave the franchise after just two seasons.
According to Newsweek, the Starship Troopers star left after clashing with most of the cast members
over accusations of, quote, "mom-shaming" as well as some rumors involving an ex-cast member.
Richards found herself in the middle of a scandal when former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star
Brandi Glanville claimed that she and Richards had an affair while Richards was married.
The Drop Dead Gorgeous actor repeatedly denied Glanville's story throughout Season eleven.
While Richards left the reality show on bad terms with many of the women, a rep for
the star told People that she was leaving the Bravo franchise because of her heavy workload.
"The Bold and the Beautiful is her second concurrent acting gig
so she was looking to replace RHOBH with time loving her amazing husband, children
and who knows, maybe even friends now. [...] She took her three productions down to two
so now she can enjoy her family more as well."
American socialite and reality TV veteran Tinsley Mortimer was the perfect fit to join the ladies of
The Real Housewives of New York. Mortimer was on the show for quite a few seasons,
but she stepped away with little to no warning in the middle of Season twelve.
As Bravo's The Daily Dish noted, she made her exit after she made the decision to
leave New York City to move to Chicago to be with her fiancé, Scott Kluth.
At the Real Housewives of New York reunion,
Mortimer insisted she left on her own terms, saying:
"Scott never made me choose between him and the show."
"I knew that the show was definitely an issue for him and I knew that when we got back together,
it was a decision that I had to make."
While speaking on the "Reality Life with Kate Casey" podcast,
the former Housewife said that she was happy that she made the decision to leave the franchise.
Mortimer shared that she's now focusing on the bigger picture,
which includes getting married to Kluth and raising a family.
The Real Housewives of New York would be nothing without OG Bethenny Frankel,
who has worked tirelessly since the show’s first season in 2008 to become the mogul she is today.
While she took some time off from the show after the third season in 2010, she rejoined in 2015.
But in a shocking move, the Skinnygirl founder left the Bravo franchise ahead of Season twelve,
without any of her cast members knowing about her sudden departure.
In a lengthy statement with Entertainment Tonight, the former Housewife shared,
"It's time to move on and focus on my daughter, my philanthropy
and my production partnership with Mark Burnett,
producing and starring in shows which represent a shift in the conversation for women."
However, not everyone was on board with her exit from the series,
including longtime colleague Ramona Singer, who told Entertainment Tonight,
"I'm happy for Bethenny and wish her the best but I think it's strange that me
and the other cast members had to read about it in the press instead of hearing it directly by text."
Regardless of how the other women feel, it appears that Frankel has no regrets.
During Season four of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, fans got to meet Carlton Gebbia,
a witch who practices Wicca, and, at the time, literally lived in a castle.
Gebbia's religion did not sit well with fellow cast member Kyle Richards,
and the two frequently clashed on the series.
While some of the Housewives were apparently worried about Gebbia putting spells on them,
their time sharing the small screen was brief, because Gebbia was fired after her first season.
According to People, her termination quote,
"was a long time coming," but Gebbia explained to E! News,
"[My] husband does have a project in the works, a reality show."
And her exit from Real Housewives of Beverly Hills gave her the opportunity to explore that avenue.
The Facts of Life actor Kim Fields was not happy with all the drama
when she appeared on just one season of The Real Housewives of Atlanta.
The star joined the cast for its eighth season, but it would be her last. She admitted that she
was more than ready to move on from the reality show on The Rickey Smiling Morning Show, saying:
"It feels more like Brett Favre and the Jets, you know — I'm done. I think about too,
at the beginning of the season, what did my mama say? 'Get in and get out.' Listen to your mama.'"
Fields got along well with all of the other Housewives, except for Kenya Moore.
Moore later told Andy Cohen on Watch What Happens Live that she did not get
along with Fields because she believed the sitcom star wasn't being quote, "authentic."
Even so, Fields said that being on the show was mostly positive.
She shared on The Rickey Smiling Morning Show,
"It was to be able to do a genre that I'd been asked to do before and finding a way to do that
made sense for my team and for the family. Overall it was a really great experience."
Dina Cantin, formerly known as Dina Manzo,
appeared on the first two seasons of The Real Housewives of New Jersey.
Cantin's time on the series was brief, leaving the show after the seventh episode of Season two,
and later telling E! News that she left to get away from castmate Danielle Staub.
"The most important thing in my life is to live peacefully and be happy,
and right now, everything in my life, except for this Danielle situation, is happy."
The reality star returned for Season six in 2014. Her comeback didn't last long,
as she announced she was leaving after that season because she was no longer a New Jersey resident.
She moved to Malibu, California, following her divorce from ex-husband Thomas Manzo.
Cantin said she needed a change of scenery. She shared:
"I wanted to run as far away as possible from what was going on, and my daughter was in college,
and I was like, 'OK, I can pick up my animals and go anywhere I want.' And I did."
Hey, if it makes Cantin happy, it's Dina-mite to us.
Check out one of our newest videos right here! Plus, even more Nicki Swift
videos about your favorite Housewives are coming soon.
Subscribe to our YouTube channel and hit the bell so you don't miss a single one.