20 'Real Housewives' and Where They Are Now
If there's a show that has kept us going when social drama and gossip were in short supply during lockdown, it was the Real Housewives franchise.
The empire kicked off in 2006 when Bravo introduced The Real Housewives of Orange County—a look into the lives, loves, careers and friendships of the women of the affluent Californian neighbourhood.
It was such a success that it resulted in spin-offs: New York City (RHONY), Atlanta (RHOA), New Jersey (RHONJ), D.C (RHODC)., Beverly Hills (RHOBH), Miami (RHOM), Potomac (RHOP), Dallas (RHOD), and Salt Lake City (RHOSLC).
Over the past 15 years, the franchise has given us some all time great reality TV stars. Here's a look at some of the most high profile Housewives, and where they are now.
Teresa Giudice
Teresa joined the cast of The Real Housewives of New Jersey in the first season, and has remained an original cast member ever since.
In 2014, she and her husband Joe pleaded guilty to 41 counts of fraud, and Teresa was sentenced to 15 months in a federal prison. In 2019, she and Joe confirmed their separation and their divorce was finalised in 2020.
Teresa is now dating Luis Ruelas and is filming Real Housewives All-Stars, where she will spend time on a tropical island with some of the franchise's biggest stars.
Kyle Richards
Former child actress Kyle is the sole remaining original cast member of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, having joined the show in 2010.
Her longevity means that she was a shoe-in for the All Stars cast, and is currently filming the special spin-off.
Kyle lives in Encino with her husband Mauricio Umansky and their three daughters; she is also mum to Farrah from her first marriage to Guraish Aldjufrie.
Brandi Glanville
Brandi was a main cast member of Beverly Hills for three seasons, but since season five, she has been a sporadic guest on the show.
However, she became the centre of a major plot point last year, as she claimed that she had an affair with Denise Richards, something Denise has denied.
Brandi has since said her time on Housewives is "done," and currently hosts her own podcast called Brandi Glanville Unfiltered.
Lisa Rinna
Melrose Place and Days Of Our Lives star Lisa joined The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills in 2014 and has remained one of the franchise's best loved cast members.
Currently, all eyes are on Lisa and her husband Harry Hamlin as their youngest daughter Amelia dates Scott Disick, who is 20 years older than her and shares three kids with Kourtney Kardashian.
As well as remaining on Real Housewives, Lisa launched her own cosmetics line last year called Rinna Beauty.
Aviva Drescher
Aviva Drescher was only on The Real Housewives of New York City for two seasons, but became infamous thanks in part to a memorable scene where she threw her prosthetic leg across the room during a row.
While she never returned to the show, the native New Yorker hasn't ruled it out, telling Page Six in 2018: "If they needed somebody and I worked in the mix, I would go back.
"I really think the Housewives are some of the strongest women around because they are portraying their real life and they're getting hammered for it and to have that thick skin. I think it's really admirable."
Aviva is a mum of four and lives in New York with husband and hedge fund CEO Reid H Drescher.
Kim Zolciak-Biermann
Kim was one of the OG Real Housewives of Atlanta until the fifth season of the series, and returned as a "friend of the housewives" for the show's tenth season in 2017.
However, she remained in reality TV, getting her own spin-off Don't Be Tardy, which has run for eight seasons.
Kim lives in Georgia with her husband Kroy Biermann and their four children, while she has two daughters from previous relationships and adopted Kroy's two daughters after they got married.
Yolanda Hadid
Yolanda Hadid starred on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills between seasons three and six, but has remained in the spotlight due to her very famous family.
Yolanda is mum to supermodels Gigi and Bella and male model Anwar, who is dating Dua Lipa, and last year became a grandmother as Gigi welcomed a daughter with Zayn Malik.
She has also raised awareness for Lyme disease, having been diagnosed in 2012.
Tamra Judge
Tamra devastated fans of The Real Housewives of Orange County when she confirmed in 2020 that she was leaving the show, after being a main cast member since season three.
She now owns a gym, CUT Fitness, in California, and launched a CBD wellness product line with husband Eddie in 2019.
Kelly Bensimon
Model Kelly Bensimon joined the Real Housewives of New York City for three seasons, but was asked to leave after season four following a controversial incident on "Scary Island". Speaking about it to Vulture in 2010, she said: "Some people are like, 'You had a breakdown,' and I'm like, no, I had a breakthrough."
Since leaving the show, Kelly got into writing, penning six books, before achieving her realtor license.
That career path is working out pretty well for Kelly, as she has reportedly sold $50 million worth of property in 2021 alone after joining Douglas Elliman in 2019.
Luann de Lesseps
The Countess Luann joined the cast of Real Housewives of New York City in 2008, and after briefly leaving the show due to no longer living in NYC, she returned as a main cast member in season seven.
In 2016, she married Tom D'Agostino Jr., officially losing the Countess title she kept after her divorce from Count Alexandre de Lesseps. However, she has used the title for her cabaret show Countess and Friends, which she launched in 2018.
Luann is also filming the Housewives All Stars series in Turks and Caicos.
Caroline Manzo
Caroline was an OG cast member of the Real Housewives of New Jersey, and remained on the show for five seasons before departing.
However, she received her own spin-off, Manzo'd With Children, which ran for three seasons.
Caroline turned down a chance to return part-time to RHNJ in the tenth season, and her family remains "thick as thieves", with Caroline often sharing pictures of her kids and grandchildren on social media.
NeNe Leakes
As one of the OG Real Housewives of Atlanta, NeNe was a main cast member on and off until 2020, when she announced she would not be returning to the show.
She parlayed her reality TV show success into acting work, starring as Roz Washington on Glee, and recently opened her own bar and lounge called The Linnethia Lounge.
NeNe also has two other businesses: fashion store Swagg Boutique and the wig shop Color Mane.
Bethenny Frankel
After shooting to fame on The Apprentice, Bethenny secured a spot on The Real Housewives of New York City, starring on eight seasons and achieving two spin-off shows, Bethenny Ever After and Bethenny & Fredrik, as well as a daytime talk show called Bethenny, which was pulled after one season.
She can now call herself a mogul, with her lifestyle brand Skinnygirl now a multi-million dollar business.
Bethenny has launched a new HBO Max show, The Big Shot with Bethenny, in which she attempts to find a protégé.
She is also prepping for her third marriage, after getting engaged to businessman Paul Bernon.
Lisa Vanderpump
London-born Lisa, a former actress and video star, was an OG member of the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills cast, and remained on the show for nine seasons before she landed her own spin-off, Vanderpump Rules, which focuses on the running of her West Hollywood restaurant SUR.
Vanderpump Rules has been confirmed to return for its ninth season.
In addition, Lisa and her husband Ken Todd run another three restaurants and a non-profit dog rescue organisation, and live in a lavish estate in Beverly Hills.
Taylor Armstrong
Taylor only appeared as a main cast member in the first three seasons of Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, but will forever remain an internet star thanks to a meme of her screaming across a table, juxtaposed with a picture of a cat.
The meme has a rather dark backstory, though, as the row Taylor was involved in related to allegations that she was abused by her husband Russell. Russell took his own life in 2011.
Taylor went on to marry John Bluher, an attorney, in 2015, and she wrote a New York Times bestselling book, Hiding From Reality.
It seems she is still happy to have been a Housewife, though, as she recently reunited with some of her cast members on a Bravo Blasts From The Past special.
Eileen Davidson
Daytime Emmy award winner Eileen was a household name before joining Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, having starred as Kristen DiMera on NBC's Days of Our Lives and Ashley Abbott on CBS's The Young and the Restless and The Bold and the Beautiful.
She joined the reality show in 2015 and left in season seven, before returning as a guest in season eight and making a cameo in season 10.
Speaking about a possible return in 2019, she told KLTA 5 Morning News: " Would I do it again? I might pop in now and then. You never say never. You know, I did enjoy aspects of it. But, it's high anxiety. The anxiety level is very, very high. No rules — it's like the wild, wild west of women."
Soap legend Eileen remains on The Young and the Restless.
Vicki Gunvalson
Vicki was an original cast member of The Real Housewives of Orange County, but in January 2020, she announced she was leaving after 14 seasons, saying: "It's been an incredible ride for 14 years and I want thank all of you for your support, for your love and for 'whooping it up' with me along the way."
The Coto Insurance CEO is currently renovating a "downsized" house in California, and is preparing to marry Steve Lodge, after having to postpone their wedding in 2020 due to the pandemic.
Vicki was reportedly in talks to join the All-Stars series, but producers "changed their plans".
Ramona Singer
Ramona Singer is the sole remaining original RHNY cast member, having starred in all 13 seasons.
As well as her reality TV career, Ramona has launched her own anti-aging skincare serum, Ageless by Ramona, and is a real estate broker in training, having joined the same real estate company as Kelly Bensimon.
Ramona is currently filming the All-Stars season in Turks and Caicos.
Kandi Burruss
Kandi first shot to fame as part of the girl group Xscape, and achieved a Grammy win for her writing credits on TLC's hit "No Scrubs", while also writing songs like "Bills, Bills, Bills" for Destiny's Child and "There You Go" for Pink.
She joined The Real Housewives of Atlanta in season two and remains on the show, while also receiving spin-offs in The Kandi Factory, Kandi's Wedding and Kandi's Ski Trip.
In 2020, Kandi won the third season of The Masked Singer, having performed as Angel throughout the show.
She also had a recurring role on Lena Waithe's series The Chi, and made an appearance in Issa Rae's Insecure.
Teddi Mellencamp
The daughter of singer John Mellencamp, Teddi joined The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills in season eight, only to depart three seasons later.
Despite having a role in two of the show's biggest storylines - getting dragged into "Puppy-gate" and breaking the news of the alleged Brandi/Denise affair - Teddi announced that her contract had not been renewed and she wouldn't be returning for season 11.
While it was denied that her departure had anything to do with her "All In" diet plan, which costs $600 to sign up for, the plan has been criticised by many claiming it to be a starvation diet. Teddi has always defended the plan.
She also works as an accountability coach, and has her own podcast, the Teddi Tea Pod.
