Vicki Gunvalson Confirms She Will Not Return To ‘RHOC’ In A ‘Friend’ Role For Season 15

Vicki Gunvalson won’t be returning to her “friend” role on the upcoming 15th season of The Real Housewives of Orange County.

Over the weekend, while attending BravoCon with her co-stars, including Shannon Beador and Tamra Judge, Gunvalson told fans that when it comes to returning to the Bravo TV reality series next year for its new episodes, she will only be doing so if her full-time position is reinstated.

“I’m never coming back reduced again,” Gunvalson said during a panel event at the first-ever fan convention, via a report from OK! Magazine on November 16.

During BravoCon, one fan asked Gunvalson and other original cast members of the Real Housewives franchise how they know when it is time to quit their shows. In response, Gunvalson told the curious fan that she and Kyle Richards, of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills, had just discussed the topic backstage.

According to the magazine, Gunvalson sang a different tune when she appeared alongside Beador and Judge on Jerry O’Connell’s daytime talk show earlier this year. At that time, Gunvalson said she had been advised to stay with the show until she was fired. As she explained, her producer, Scott Dunlop, once told her that unless Bravo TV gives her the boot, she should never voluntarily leave the series.

Also during the appearance, Gunvalson said that she was having fun with her “friend” role on The Real Housewives of Orange County Season 14 and noted that her co-stars, at least most of them, were her friends. She also pointed out that when it came to the Real Housewives franchise, she loves what she’s created.

“I have very much love for my franchise — a love for what I’ve created [and] a lot of love for my cast, we’ve been through hell and back. But truthfully, it’s our reality,” she explained. “It’s what my life has gone through for the last 14 years. And it’s been some bumpiness.”

As The Inquisitr previously reported, Gunvalson and her Real Housewives of Orange County co-stars reunited on Friday, November 8, to film the Season 14 reunion, and after doing so, Gunvalson took to her Instagram page to thank her fiancé, Steve Lodge, for being her “rock” throughout production.

“It’s a wrap. Season 14 reunion done. Now onto my new projects. Thanks @stevelodge_oc for being my rock,” she captioned a photo of the two of them enjoying a late dinner at a restaurant in Burbank, California, via OK! Magazine.