‘The Real Housewives Of New York’ Is Reportedly Headed For A Cast Shakeup, Leah McSweeney Calls For Diversity

The Real Housewives of New York City is allegedly headed for a shakeup.

According to a new report, Bravo is hoping to bring in another wife, or a number of wives, to the series for its upcoming 13th season in hopes of presenting a more diverse group of ladies to its viewers.

“Bravo is planning to shake things up with The Real Housewives of New York next year,” an insider told Us Weekly magazine on August 10.

“There’s going to be some changes. … A handful of white women doesn’t necessarily represent what New York City is all about,” a second insider added.

Around this time each year, the group prepares to begin filming new episodes of the show. However, because of the ongoing concerns over the spread of COVID-19, it is hard to say when production will actually begin. That said, it has been rumored for weeks that there will be at least one new face when the show resumes.

Just last month, Luann de Lesseps told the magazine that she was “asking some friends” of hers to join the show in an effort to “diversify the cast in New York.” Meanwhile, Leah McSweeney, the newest member of the program, spoke to Page Six last week, saying that she hopes to see not only a better mix of race, but also a deeper range in terms of where members live and their individual interests.

According to Leah, she believes that the series should feature more diversity because “New Yorkers are not a monolith.” She then added that when it comes to the future, she believes that the series is headed in a more diverse direction as she and her co-stars approach the start date of production on Season 13.

As The Inquisitr previously reported, an OK! magazine source revealed at the end of July that Alicia Quarles, who currently works as a correspondent on Daily Mail TV and formerly worked as a host on the E! network, deserved to be cast on the long-running program amid their efforts to “increase diversity.”

A short time later, a representative for Bravo confirmed to The Inquisitr that while Alicia did meet with casting, “she has absolutely not been cast.”

“Alicia has just simply met with the casting agency for RHONY as have numerous other women who have been recommended by the current New York Housewives. That is as far as the discussion with Alicia has gone,” a source explained.