For over 18 years, the Real Housewives franchise has churned out some of the most polarizing personalities on the small screen.
As the franchise expanded, we were introduced to more and more new faces, but some stood out for all the wrong reasons.
With the franchise showing no signs of slowing down, it’s time to reminisce about the iconic cast members with the most drastic falls from grace.
We’re talking about housewives who ruined their reputations by suing certain cast members and their shows or landing in the slammer.
There are so many big names that wouldn’t have been big without the franchise
Check them out below.
1. Tamra Judge – The Real Housewives of Orange County
Oh, Tamra, what do we do about how you’ve destroyed your entire fan base?
Since debuting on RHOC in 2007, Tamra has been running her mouth, getting caught up in feuds, and offering her sentiments on things that don’t concern her.
It’s her thing. However, her first handful of seasons were fun because she kept the drama light.
That all came crashing down when she was fired following RHOC Season 14 amid poor feedback and dwindling ratings.
For some reason, this was just a two-season timeout, and Tamra returned on RHOC Season 17 and made it her mission to go after Jennifer Pedranti.
Just when we thought she couldn’t get any worse, she practically turned her back on Shannon Beador following her DUI arrest.
The icing was when she made friends with Alexis Bellino again and brought her back to the show to terrorize Shannon, who was struggling.
Tamra is the perfect reality TV villain, but her downfall has been epic in recent years, and if she continues on this path, she may wind up off Bravo forever.
2. Jen Shan – The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City
As an original cast member of RHOSLC, Jen Shah knew how to bring the drama by going after anyone who got under her skin.
While she was a great adversary on the show, the good she brought to the screen was overshadowed when the FBI arrested her during the second season.
After a season of pleading her innocence to the ladies for her part in a fraud case that targeted the elderly, Jen changed her plea to guilty and is now serving a lengthy stint in prison.
If that’s not a fall from grace, what is?
The sad part is that we’re convinced RHOSLC producers will pick up the phone whenever she’s released, assuming the show is still on the air.
3. Teresa Giudice – The Real Housewives of New Jersey
Teresa Giudice is one of the biggest villains to hit the small screen.
We’ll never forget her flipping the table during the RHONJ freshman finale because, back then, that behavior was unheard of in an unscripted series.
Despite countless questionable moments on the show, everything came crashing down for her when she pled guilty to bank, mail, wire, and bankruptcy fraud, jeopardizing the future of RHONJ.
Of course, Bravo paused the show until she completed her prison stint, meaning she’s been on every single season.
At the time, it looked like producers believed there was no show without Teresa, but maybe it would have been better to run the show without her to establish whether that was true.
Teresa’s time with RHONJ may or may not have concluded with Season 14 because the show is in a terrible place creatively.
4. Monica Garcia – The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City
Initially, Monica was just what RHOSLC needed after Jen Shah’s departure.
She sent shockwaves through the friend group and was unafraid to argue with her fellow co-stars.
There was so much potential for her to be on the show for years, but her snowflake was snatched from her after being revealed to be a part of a social media page that had been trolling the cast for years.
It was a massive betrayal, but she doubled down at the reunion instead of offering context about her actions.
It makes sense that she wasn’t asked back because how could the ladies trust someone like that?
Producers have tried and failed to bring her back since, but it’s probably for the best if she doesn’t return.
5. Bethenny Frankel – The Real Housewives of New York City
Bethenny Frankel was an instant success on RHONY and used the platform to build an empire before headlining multiple spinoffs.
There was an element of unpredictability with Bethenny that made her a great personality on-screen.
However, she’s stuck the middle finger at Bravo in recent years by talking badly about the network and having former Bravolebrities on her podcasts to talk about their experiences.
Reality TV should have more stringent protocols because some cast members have been treated terribly.
Bethenny Frankel doesn’t strike us as the person to be spearheading such an endeavor because of how she treated her co-stars on the show.
In recent years, she’s focused on social media and has managed to jump from reality TV to TikTok, but it seems she’s purposefully trying to be controversial and out of touch for engagement.
It’s not a good look.
6. Danielle Cabral – The Real Housewives of New Jersey
Danielle Cabral was a breath of fresh air during her first season of RHONJ because she was ready to go to war with whatever cast member said the wrong thing.
She was the most Jersey cast member in years and won many fans for her unfiltered opinions.
Unfortunately, she washed all that away during Season 14 because she continually got caught up in physical altercations.
A producer almost sent her home from the season finale taping because she lunged over a table at Jennifer Aydin.
The show has portrayed her as a ticking time bomb just waiting to pop off, and that won’t do her any favors as RHONJ awaits word on its future.
7. Braunwyn Windham-Burke – The Real Housewives of Orange County
Braunwyn had a stellar first season on RHOC, and there was every indication that she would be on the show for several years.
However, her storyline shifted significantly the following season, and many cast members turned on her because of her actions.
Shannon went so far as to say that Braunwyn had lied about various aspects of her life during her freshman season, making it difficult for anyone to trust her.
She was a far cry from the Braunwyn viewers met during her inaugural season, so there’s a good chance that fans thought they were watching a different person the following season.
It’s hard to imagine Braunwyn being asked back, which is a shame because Bravo bet big on her after a stellar freshman season.
8. Robyn Dixon – The Real Housewives of Potomac
As an original star of The Real Housewives of Potomac, Robyn Dixon was caught up in plenty of drama throughout her tenure.
However, her downfall during Season 7 should have sealed her fate, and she should never have been asked back.
Robyn caught heat when it emerged that she concealed her husband, Juan Dixon’s, infidelity from the Bravo cameras.
Even worse, she delved into the details behind a paywall on the Patreon account for her podcast, Reasonably Shady.
At that point, it was obvious that she should not be back, but still, Bravo persisted, and she returned for Season 8.
Thankfully, she was let go and won’t return for Season 9.