Nene Leakes broke down in tears on ‘Tamron Hall,’ where she addressed her controversial ‘RHOA’ exit. Nene explained why she felt ‘forced out’ of the franchise and revealed what she wants out of a meeting with Bravo.
Nene Leakes hit a new level of candidness during a virtual appearance on Tamron Hall on Friday. The former Real Housewives of Atlanta star, 52, uncovered more details about her shocking exit from the show, including why she believes she was “forced out” of the franchise — a claim she previously made in a YouTube video slamming Andy Cohen on September 29.
“They offered six episodes. Normally I’d usually do 8-23 [episodes per season],” Nene revealed about the alleged deal Bravo offered her for RHOA‘s upcoming thirteenth season. She noted that despite the change in episodes, “my salary would not be reduced.” However, it wasn’t about the money for Nene.
“Basically what happened over the past four years, I felt very forced out. I felt like my role was being diminished,” she said, explaining, “Every year they would give me less and less episodes and every year they’d be like Nene is holding out. It wasn’t me, I was trying to understand why I was given less and less every season from a show that I helped become successful.” Nene had been with RHOA since its inception in 2009.
After a commercial break, Tamron revealed that Nene cried behind the scenes until the second the part of the interview started. When asked why she’s so hurt over the situation with Bravo, Nene said, “I think the biggest thing is, loving somebody or caring or feeling loyal to them and not getting the same thing in return.”
In the days leading up to her interview, Nene took to Twitter with a number of allegations against the network, claiming she was discriminated against, among other serious claims about racism. When asked if she plans to pursue any legal action towards Bravo, Nene admitted that she hopes both parties can settle things behind the scenes.
“I hope we don’t have to go to that extent. I’m hoping there will be some sort of sit down or something we can work out behind the scenes. I want you to understand that I’ve worked with these people for years. I’ve loved them like they’re my own family members,” Nene said as she began to cry. “Sometimes when you’re watching these show, you only see what’s happening on the surface and not behind the scenes.”
As for what she wants out of a potential meeting with Bravo? — “I can’t tell you everything that I want from them, but I can tell you that I want fair treatment. I deserve fair treatment,” Nene said. “I haven’t done anything that no one else has done there, or haven’t done even worse… [I want] a seat at the table,” she continued. “I wouldn’t want another young woman to experience go through the things I had to go through.”
Nene’s been making headlines since she announced her exit from RHOA last month. “There’s been a lot of emotions on both sides,” she said in a YouTube video published on September 17. “It’s been hard and I have made a hard, difficult decision to not be part of Real Housewives of Atlanta season 13.”
At the time, a spokesperson for Bravo told HollywoodLife, “We wish Nene all the best in her future endeavors and thank her for sharing her journey for over a decade with the fans of The Real Housewives of Atlanta. She’s been instrumental since the start and will truly be missed, and maybe one day she’ll hold the peach again.”
However, things took a dramatic turn in the days following Nene’s announcement. On September 27, Wendy Williams appeared on an episode of Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen, where she discussed Nene’s exit from the show. If you’re not caught up, Nene and Wendy are no longer friends due to the talk show host’s continued comments about Nene on her show.
“I believe that this is not a truth,” Wendy told Andy about Nene leaving RHOA. ″Nene has quit the show several times and you’ll have her back. Nene likes attention, dramatic attention.”
Nene didn’t take well to Wendy’s comments and made it known on Twitter after WWHL aired. “BYE QUEENS!, Nene wrote in a tweet, adding, “They both need my help with their poor ratings,” in reference to WWHL and The Wendy Show. Nene also shared tweets from other fans that slammed Andy for bringing Wendy on his show “just to talk about Nene.”
But, she wasn’t done there. Nene aired her frustrations about Wendy and Andy in a 7-minute YouTube video (mentioned at the top) on September 29. The reality star laid out a bunch of insults at both hosts, and that’s when she first claimed that she was “forced out” of RHOA. Andy has not yet addressed Nene’s claim.