Reality TV fans were shocked to hear that Monique Samuels is officially leaving The Real Housewives of Potomac again. After returning in Season 10 as a friend of the cast, Samuels will not be back for Season 11, according to multiple reports.
The former reality star originally joined the Bravo series in Season 2 before exiting after the explosive Season 5 reunion. Her departure followed ongoing conflicts with Gizelle Bryant and Candiace Dillard Bassett, as well as struggles in her marriage to former NFL player Chris Samuels.
According to Reality Blurb, producers had hoped Monique’s divorce would become a bigger part of her Season 10 storyline.
“Bravo thought they were going to get some drama from the Chris Samuels and Stacey Rusch situation,” a source told the outlet.
During the season, questions surfaced about whether Chris had been romantically involved with cast member Stacey Rusch while he was separated from Monique. She later confronted Stacey at the reunion over claims that she had been sharing information with Chris.
After the reunion aired, however, Monique walked back some of the accusations on social media.
“A lot of time has passed since the reunion was filmed and after gaining more info since then, I don’t believe Stacey had anything to do with any of that bulls–t,” she admitted back in March. “I’ll probably go live on IG at some point this week and give yall the ENTIRE story. I haven’t watched the reunion episodes yet so let me catch up and get back to you but I at least wanted to clear her name on ALL of it…”
“On the reunion, Monique showed her failed receipts with her kid, but she ended up changing that story too,” the source said.
Earlier this year, Samuels explained why she returned to the show after once insisting she never would.