NeNe Leakes Confirms She Is Too Busy For Season 9 Of The ‘Real Housewives Of Atlanta’
NeNe Leakes might be leaving the Real Housewives of Atlanta for good.
Season 9 of the hit reality show is currently filming, and Leakes has not been spotted anywhere close to the production site. Is she really parting ways with RHOA?
TMZ is reporting that Leakes is too busy with her personal life to appear on the show next season. Although fans expected Leakes to make a cameo, Leake’s schedule is full to the max.
Apparently, Leakes is busy with a new clothing line, a game show, a tour, and her new role on Fashion Police. A guest appearance is not out of the question, though her packed schedule doesn’t have much room for anything else.
In order to fill the void, producers have reportedly cast another Housewife for the upcoming season.
This isn’t the first time Leakes has left the reality show. According to Perez Hilton, she announced her definitive departure after Season 8 of RHOA. However, Leakes made a cameo appearance during the cast vacation trip in Jamaica.
Leakes is one of the few OGs remaining in the Real Housewives franchise. The only other active ones are Lisa Vanderpump, Vicki Gunvalson, Kyle Richards, Ramona Singer, Bethenny Frankel, Luann de Lesseps, Jacqueline Laurita, and Teresa Giudice.
According to Enstarz, Leakes is the only original cast member of RHOA. DeShawn Snow only lasted one season, and Lisa Wu left after Season 2. Sheree Whitfield exited in Season 4, while Kim Zolciak followed her lead a year later.
Season 9 of RHOA will include Porsha Williams, Phaedra Parks, and Kenya Moore. Cynthia Bailey is rumored to have left the show after her break up with Peter Thomas.
What’s next for NeNe Leakes?
For now, fans can watch Leakes host To Tell the Truth with Betty White. She also just launched her first clothing line on the Home Shopping Network following her hit one-woman tour.
At the same time, ET Online is reporting that Leakes recently looked unrecognizable in some swimsuit photos she shared on Instagram.
The images featured Leakes in a leopard print outfit with the caption: “Makeup free sitting on the beach in my Cabana #anti-aging #fabgab #brownsugga.”
The reality star had long blond hair and made some jokes about seeing a plastic surgeon in order to trim things down.
Despite the plastic surgeon jab, Leakes was very proud of her skinny legs.
“Damn these some long skinny brown legs!” she shared on another Instagram photo. “I thought they were fat and I know I told that plastic surgeon to bleach my skin! Calling his ass now.”
Fans were quick to notice Leakes’ transformation.
“Wow, NeNe! You don’t look too much like the old NeNe in the face anymore,” one fan wrote.
“It’s like a whole new person,” a second fan added.
Leakes is no stranger to plastic surgery. During a recent appearance on Watch What Happens Live!, Leakes told Andy Cohen about her second nose job.
Leakes claims that she had a legitimate medical reason for getting rhinoplasty, though she doesn’t care what people think about it.
Meanwhile, Leakes’ time on RHOA might be over, but that doesn’t mean she will be gone forever. In fact, an insider revealed that Leakes is always willing to make a cameo on the show.
“After making appearances this season, it wouldn’t be a surprise if she came back in some capacity,” the insider noted. “That door is definitely still open.”
The new season of the Real Housewives of Atlanta is expected to return to Bravo in November.
Tell us! Will the RHOA be the same without NeNe Leakes? Let us know in the comments below.
[Image via Bravo]
