Kelly Dodd Says ‘Real Housewives’ Franchise Ending Soon – Could She Be Right?

Kelly Dodd/YouTube

Brace yourselves, Bravoholics! Kelly Dodd has a shocking prediction. Is theĀ Real Housewives ending? What makes her say that? And could she be right?

Kelly Dodd fired from RHOC after controversial COVID-19 remarks

In June, Bravo announced the cast list for the upcoming Season 16 of The Real Housewives of Orange County. Much to Kelly Dodd’s shock, she wasn’t on the list. Her status on the show had been up in the air for months after she made numerous controversial comments throughout 2020.

At the beginning of the global COVID-19 pandemic, Dodd likened the virus to a flu, and equating the deaths to “God thinning the herd.”

At the RHOC Season 15 reunion, she doubled down on those comments after Andy Cohen confronted her via viewer questions. However, Andy Cohen also went on record to defend Kelly’s comments, noting it was her right to say whatever she wanted.

But backlash from viewers showed that Kelly Dodd’s comments didn’t come without consequence.

Returning for Season 16 are Shannon Beador, Gina Kirschenheiter and Emily Simpson. Bravo cleaned house following Season 15. In addition to Kelly Dodd, Braunwyn Windham-Burke and Elizabeth Lyn Vargas also got fired.

Fan-favorite Heather Dubrow is returning to RHOC after leaving following Season 11. Viewers will meet three new faces when the Bravo show returns – Noella Bergener, Nicole James, and Jennifer Armstrong.

Despite rumors, neither RHOC OG Vicki Gunvalson or her bestie Tamra Judge are returning for Season 16. However, both are slated to appear in Season 2 of the all-star spin-off airing on Peacock streaming next year. Season 1 will debut later this year exclusively on the streaming service.

Starts new podcast with husband Rick Leventhal from Fox News

While it wasn’t Kelly Dodd’s choice to leave, she’s moving on to other projects. She recently started a podcast with her husband, Rick Leventhal. The news reporter left Fox News around the time of Kelly Dodd’s firing.

Leventhal had been working with the network for over 20 years. However, he moved to California from NYC after marrying Kelly Dodd.

Credit: Kelly Dodd/Instagram
Credit: Kelly Dodd/Instagram

She often promotes the podcast on her Instagram feed. Rick and Kelly: Unmasked is only available through their subscription-based Patreon.

Why Kelly Dodd thinks Real Housewives franchise is over

Getting fired from RHOC doesn’t mean Kelly Dodd isn’t going to talk about it. She recently spoke to Us Weekly about her time on the franchise. She dished a few inside scoops, but the big shocker came when she claimed the Real Housewives franchise is ending soon.

Dodd points to the all-star spin-offs as proof that the show is on the decline. According to Kelly, the network had to bring in the big guns for one big show because the individual series are ‘boring.’

Slamming the franchise as “stale,” Kelly opines that the producers are pulling too many strings behind-the-scenes and manufacturing drama.

She points to Lisa Rinna’s recent claim that Erika Jayne got in a heated argument with producers that was never shown on the air. Allegedly, RHOBH producers encouraged Garcelle Beauvais to repeat a comment Erika said in private on camera. Erika told Garcelle and Crystal Minkoff that her estranged husband, Tom Girardi, calls her every day. Erika previously told the women that she hadn’t spoken to Tom since she left him.

That argument between Erika and the producers is the kind of content viewers should be seeing, Kelly claims. She said that the network needs to break the fourth wall to put the real back in ‘reality.’

Bravo famously broke the fourth wall during Season 10 of RHOBH by showing Denise Richards saying “Bravo, bravo, bravo” to stop the cameras from filming. According to Kelly Dodd, no one on RHOC has ever done that or even knew it was a thing.

Does RHOC give Gina Kirschenheiter the ‘good girl’ edit?

During her video chat with Us Weekly, Kelly also revealed that the bad behavior of one of her former co-stars never made it on television. Dodd claims that Gina Kirschenheiter verbally went after Elizabeth Vargas during their cast trip. However, none of that made it on the air.

Kelly mused that the editors never show Gina in a bad light.

Do you agree with Kelly Dodd that the Real Housewives franchise is ending soon? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

Bookmark TV Shows Ace so you don’t miss any updates on when the new season of RHOC will premiere.

Watch Kelly Dodd’s full interview below.

Jennifer Havener
Follow me

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *