Biggest ‘Real Housewives’ Moments of 2022: Jen Shah’s Plea, More

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Biggest ‘Real Housewives’ Moments of 2022: From Teresa Giudice’s Wedding to Jen Shah’s Guilty Plea

Mention it all! The Real Housewives of multiple cities had an action-packed 2022, filled with divorces, legal trouble and general drama.

The year kicked off with the continued saga of Erika Jayne‘s split from Tom Girardi, from whom she filed for divorce in November 2020. One month later, the estranged couple were named in a fraud lawsuit that accused them of embezzling $2 million in settlement funds earmarked for families of plane crash victims — and that was just the beginning of their legal woes.

The Pretty Mess author has not been accused of any crimes, but she’s been open about how much her ex’s alleged misdeeds have personally affected her. “This has been the darkest part of my life,” the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star told E!’s Daily Pop in February. “Just the most desperate, most afraid I’ve ever been in my life. Most unsure, most volatile.”

Two months later, another Housewife confirmed the end of her own relationship. In April, Real Housewives of Potomac star Ashley Darby revealed that she and husband Michael Darby had called it quits after eight years of marriage.

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“We have decided to separate. We are aware that there will be many speculative views as to why we have made this decision,” she told Bravo’s Daily Dish in a statement at the time. “People will be quick to assume that the causes were too much intrusion by reality TV into the most personal parts of our lives, age gap issues, cultural problems or child-rearing differences. Pieces of all these may have affected our pure love for each other, but no one reason is the root cause of our mutual decision to go our separate ways.”

While her year started with heartbreak, the ZenGem by Ashley founder hinted she was ready to date again by October, when BravoCon 2022 hit New York City. After Ashley confessed that she was “attracted” to Summer House star Luke Gulbranson, the duo exchanged phone numbers at the fan convention — and seemingly confirmed their romance two months later.

In December, Ashley shared a photo of herself snuggled up to the Winter House alum in cold weather gear. “The definition of a winter wonderland ❄️ I didn’t know I missed snow so much! Thank you for showing me the beauty of Minnesota! ♥️ @lukegulbranson,” she wrote via Instagram.

Her fellow Housewives couldn’t help but ask questions in the comments section, with her RHOP costar Robyn Dixon commenting, “Ok so is this your boyfriend?” Cynthia Bailey, for her part, gushed: “Y’all are so dang cute!❤️.”

Keep scrolling for a look back at the biggest Real Housewives moments of the year:

Credit: Courtesy of Lucilla D’Agostino/Instagram

Teresa Giudice’s Wedding

The Real Housewives of New Jersey star tied the knot with Luis “Louie” Ruelas in August, less than one year after getting engaged. The pair’s nuptials made headlines for a number of reasons, including Teresa’s sky-high wedding hair, which cost $10,000 and required 1,500 bobby pins. The biggest drama, however, happened after Teresa’s brother, Joe Gorga, confirmed that he and wife Melissa Gorga didn’t attend the ceremony. “Obviously, there was something that went down at the finale of filming The Real Housewives of New Jersey,” Melissa explained in an August episode of her “On Display” podcast, referring to taping for season 13 of RHONJ. “Those exact details, I obviously cannot say today. Anything that we have filmed is something that I am not able to talk about.”

An insider later told Us Weekly that what “went down” was a conversation about Melissa allegedly cheating on Joe during a business trip. The rumor was spread by other members of the cast, but the source said claimed that the Turning the Tables author “played a part” in the conflict. “This ‘rumor’ was something that Teresa had known about for over a year and had been pushing for it to come out,” the insider told Us. “Finally, the finale was perfect timing.”

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Ashley Darby’s Divorce

The RHOP star announced her split from Michael in April, but her costars were perplexed that the estranged couple were still planning to buy property together. “If I was going through a divorce, I would not be buying a house with somebody,” Wendy Osefo exclusively told Us in October. “I wouldn’t live in the same block. I may not live on the same street or the same state, but that’s her and that’s her choice.”

With Michael out of the picture, however, Ashley was able to pursue her Bravo crush, Luke. In November, the pair went on a double date with Summer House stars Lindsay Hubbard and Carl Radke. One month later, Ashley said during an episode of the “Mention It All” podcast that she was “having a really good time” getting to know the hockey coach, adding, “Meeting Luke’s family and his friends has also been really cool.”

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‘RHONY’ Reboot Drama

After months of speculation about who would star on a potential 14th season of The Real Housewives of New York City, Andy Cohen confirmed at BravoCon that the franchise was being rebooted with an entirely new cast: Sai De Silva, Ubah Hassan, Erin Dana Lichy, Jenna Lyons, Lizzy Savetsky, Jessel Taank and Brynn Whitfield. Before filming even finished, however, Lizzy exited the show, claiming that she “was on the receiving end of a torrent of antisemitic attacks” since joining the series. Bravo, meanwhile, responded in a statement, saying: “After thoughtful consideration and discussion with Lizzy, we have reached the mutual conclusion that Lizzy will not be a cast member on RHONY.”

While RHONY season 14 is still in production, Cohen confirmed that there are still plans for a RHONY: Legacy series starring select Housewives from seasons past, though he didn’t mention any specific names. “I hope that [fans are] happy with both. That’s all I can say,” the Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen host told Page Six in October. “The truth of the matter is we have not spoken to any of our classic RHONY women about Legacy yet.”

Credit: Randy Shropshire/Bravo

Jen Shah Pleads Guilty

In July, the Real Housewives of Salt Lake City star shocked fans — and her costars — when she pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud after previously entering a not guilty plea and denying all wrongdoing. “In 2012 to March 2021 in the Southern District of New York and elsewhere I agreed with others to commit wire fraud,” the reality star told the judge in a prepared statement. “I knew this was wrong. I knew many people were harmed and I’m so sorry.”

Season 3 of RHOSLC premiered two months later and showed Jen — filmed while she was still planning to plead not guilty — preparing for her would-be trial. She later confirmed she wasn’t at the reunion taping, claiming that Bravo wanted her to discuss her case, but her lawyers advised her not to talk about it. “I was clear with Bravo that out of respect for the courts and a standing judicial order, I would not be in a position to discuss anything related to my legal case or sentencing,” she said in December. “Bravo found this unsatisfactory and said they expected to discuss this ‘storyline.’ That expectation has no regard for me or my family’s well-being; so under legal advice, I will not be attending reunion. I need to focus on the most important thing in my life — my family.”

Credit: Cindy Ord/Bravo

Tamra Judge Returns to ‘RHOC’

After two seasons away from The Real Housewives of Orange County, Tamra confirmed in July that she’ll be back for season 17 of the OG franchise. Before she could announce the news herself, however, RHONY alum Jill Zarin spilled the beans, telling her Instagram followers that Tamra was returning and her friend Vicki Gunvalson was “not happy” about it. In response, Tamra replied, “Go f–k yourself @JillZarin! You thirsty bitch!”

In December, Vicki confessed to Us that she was “jealous” and “mad” when she heard about Tamra’s return. “I thought the phone would be ringing for [me],” she explained. “I’m like, ‘Hello, Andy, you’re not calling me!'”

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Erika Jayne’s Earrings

The RHOBH star’s legal woes continued in June when a judge ruled that she would have to surrender a pair of $750,000 diamond earrings given to her by Tom, who allegedly paid for the jewels with stolen funds. “The lawsuit is another misguided attempt to blame Erika for actions of Tom Girardi and others of which she had no knowledge and in which she had no involvement,” Erika’s lawyer told Us in a statement at the time.

At BravoCon, Erika denied reports that the earrings were put up for auction, telling Us: “They’re on appeal. We’ll see what happens.” Celebrity RHOBH fan Jon Hamm, meanwhile, thought she should give up the battle. “You just want to shake her and go, ‘Honey, they were never yours — give them back,’” the Mad Men alum told Howard Stern in September.

Credit: Cindy Ord/Bravo

Lisa Barlow’s Hot Mic

The Vida Tequila founder was involved in arguably the biggest RHOSLC drama of the year not related to Jen’s legal case. During a January episode of RHOSLC season 2, Lisa was caught on a hot mic ranting about costar Meredith Marks, claiming that the jewelry designer “f–ked half of New York” and couldn’t afford to buy a house because her husband, Seth Marks, “changes jobs every five minutes.” The rant remained a topic of conversation long after the episode aired, with Ralph Fiennes reciting it on WWHL in November. Meredith, meanwhile, began selling hats bearing the slogan, “I ❤️ 1/2 of New York.”

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Cynthia Bailey’s Divorce

The Real Housewives of Atlanta alum announced her split from husband Mike Hill in October after two years of marriage. “LOVE is a beautiful thing. While we both will always have love for one another, we have decided to go our separate ways,” they told Entertainment Tonight in a joint statement at the time. “We are grateful that we remain good friends, and will always cherish the many memories we’ve shared together as husband and wife.”

Less than two months later, TMZ reported that a judge had already signed off on the couple’s divorce. “[It] felt like we weren’t friends anymore,” Cynthia said during a November episode of Tamra’s “Two Ts in a Pod” podcast with Teddi Mellencamp. “I felt like it was just going toward we’re just not going to be friends if we didn’t pump the brakes.”

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The Gorgas’ Feud With Jennifer Aydin

The Ultimate Beauty Pillow creator seemingly sided with Teresa in her feud with the Gorgas — and then threw a drink at the couple while in NYC for BravoCon. During an October episode of her podcast, the “On Display” songstress claimed that there was tension between her and Jennifer because of what was said during the panels. “Things that are really just not in your lane,” Melissa said. “You gotta stay in your lane. Second of all, I’m not sure what show you’re watching if I’m ‘hanging on by a thread.’ … It’s just, like, a very toxic road to go down to create tension that’s unnecessary at a celebratory event.”

Cohen, for his part, told Entertainment Tonight that the situation was “gross,” while an insider informed Us that Bravo wasn’t happy about the altercation. “Bravo executives spoke with both the Gorgas and Jennifer Aydin after seeing the viral video,” the source explained. “They wanted them to know they don’t condone or tolerate this type of interaction and behavior, especially physical. The network isn’t happy with either side.”

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Lisa Hochstein’s Messy Split

The Real Housewives of Miami star and husband Lenny Hochstein called it quits in May after 13 years of marriage, when the plastic surgeon revealed that he’d moved on with Katharina Mazepa. The messy breakup has since started playing out on season 5 of RHOM, which gave Bravo fans their second wild hot mic moment of the year. During a December episode, Lenny was caught talking to his friend Vito about his impending split. “In a couple months, I might be single too,” the doctor said after Vito revealed that he’d recently been through a breakup. When Vito said he didn’t want to see Lenny and Lisa split, Lenny quipped, “I do.”

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NeNe Leakes’ Lawsuit

In April, the RHOA alum filed a lawsuit against Cohen, NBCUniversal and the show’s production companies, citing a hostile and racist working environment. The Linnethia Lounge owner alleged that NBC and Bravo “maintain a corporate culture that is insensitive to Black talent and fosters racially offensive behavior that goes unpunished.” Bravo never publicly addressed the lawsuit, and in August, NeNe filed paperwork to dismiss the suit “without prejudice.”

Credit: Charles Sykes/Bravo

The Lisa Rinna of It All

The RHOBH stalwart faced criticism from fans after her treatment of Kathy Hilton in season 12. During the RHOBH panel at BravoCon in October, the former soap star was booed by the audience multiple times, which only fueled rumors that she won’t return to the show for season 13.

Kathy, meanwhile, said that she won’t come back if Erika and Lisa also return. “If [the cast] was completely the same, absolutely not,” she told TMZ in October. “Because I feel they are two bullies that intimidate a lot of the other girls.”

Credit: E! Entertainment/NBC

Porsha Williams’ Wedding

The RHOA star had the second over-the-top Housewives wedding of the year in November when she married Simon Guobadia — who was previously married to her costar Falynn Guobadia. Porsha wore a total of seven looks for the two-day affair, which was attended by Bravo stars including Kandi Burruss, Kim Zolciak-Biermann, Monyetta Shaw and Marysol Patton.

Credit: Peacock

Taylor Armstrong’s Franchise Swap

After exiting RHOBH in season 6, the Hiding From Reality author announced her return to the Housewives fold — albeit in a different city. In August, Taylor became the first Housewife to swap franchises when Bravo confirmed that she will appear on season 17 of RHOC. “I am in love with all of these women and it has been such a blessing,” the Ultimate Girls Trip alum said during the RHOC panel at BravoCon. “I just feel like I am home and now I have all these great relationships, we’re having a great time.”  

Credit: Bravo

The Long-Awaited Debut of She by Sheree

After more than a decade of delays, Sherée Whitfield finally held a presentation for her signature fashion line, She by Sherée. (As fans recall, the RHOA star famously hosted a “fashion show without fashions” for the brand during the show’s first season in 2008.)

“After 14 years, I did it,” Sherée told RHOA cameras in a confessional interview during a September episode. “I’ve had a lot of ups and downs. I’ve had a lot of letdowns. I want everyone who feels like they can’t do it to keep pushing with prayer, determination, hard work. It will definitely pay off.”