As renowned author Anna Todd once wrote, “The brightest stars burn the fastest so we must love them while we can.” While that’s only half true for many of the one-season wonders whose first impressions weren’t good enough for their respective Real Housewives franchises, we’re curious nonetheless. Whatever happened to the brave women who publicly fumbled their spot in Andy Cohen’s hall of fame? What do their kids look like now? Did they get mandatory face and neck lifts, too? These prematurely retired Wives are gone, and also forgotten — that is, until now.
Let’s do a wellness check on every single one-season wonder Real Housewife because I’m nosey and have the time.
RHONY
Cindy Barshop (Season 4)
Oh, Cindy. She falls in the category of Wives who simply didn’t understand what she signed up for. She brought decent drama and girl power (her brother had existing beef with the Singer Stinger and she owned a franchised spa business as a single mother of twins), but Cindy got irrationally irritated whenever the women started yelling, which unfortunately for her was a lot of the time. As of late Cindy is reportedly focusing on supporting her twins, one of whom is transgender. She also recently announced she’s in remission from a rare brain cancer.
Jules Wainstein (Season 8)
Other than baking a fork into her calzone, Jules was known for her iconic tagline “A Jew and an Asian walked into a bar, then they had me” and her try-hard husband with a Napoleon complex, Michael. Since being steamrolled off the series by Bethenny, Jules officially divorced her short king in 2020 after a lengthy four-year battle which may have *allegedly* included reenacting Beyoncé’s Sorry music video on Michael’s car. Hopefully, single life is much smoother sailing for Jules and her two pre-teens (wow we’re old) Rio and Jagger.
Barbara Kavovit (Season 11)
Technically Barbara K was a friend of, but considering she did shoot the actual season as a Wife before being demoted in post, she kind of counts. Babs and her pink toolbox were great reality TV — just more of an HGTV/Jerseylicious moment, than rubbing elbows with Ramona Singer’s 50 closest friends. Barbara agreed it wasn’t a good fit, especially after being abandoned by her friend, LuAnn, in Miami. Tan lines may fade but Barbara’s fake tan stains on white furniture are forever <3.
Eboni K. Williams (Season 13)
Deep sigh. Eboni had so much potential and to her credit, not a lot of time to use it. To her discredit, she had a chip on her shoulder from day one and tried too hard to out-lawyer the rest of the group into respecting her. The Real Housewives is not the setting for a history lesson-themed dinner party, despite how much some of the women may have needed it, and if Leah was a real one she would’ve told her friend as much before letting her crash and burn.
RHOBH
Carlton Gebbia and Joyce Giraud (Season 4)
You might’ve forgotten Carlton but you certainly didn’t forget her Gothic house of horrors that gave all the ladies the creeps. She and fellow newcomer Joyce only lasted one season before Andy eagerly gave them the boot, but where are they now? Joyce still has that gorgeous head of hair and her super-rich husband, Michael, so all’s well that ends well. Carlton divorced her ex David in 2018 but she appears to be living her Morticia Adams fantasy nonetheless.
Kathryn Edwards (Season 6)
Kathryn was another Kyle Richards plant from her past, but unlike the morally corrupt Faye Resnick, Kathryn got a proper shot at holding a diamond. Unfortunately, Kathryn’s reserved nature did not play well on TV, but considering she’s got her Instagram account set to private that feels right for her and her husband Donnie.
Diana Jenkins (Season 12)
With plenty of free time since being removed from her role as resident Beverly Hills bully, Diana Jenkins is now focusing on raising her youngest baby Elodie with her manny/husband Asher. Diana claimed that bedrest was the reason she couldn’t return to RHOBH but many could argue it was because her erratic behavior was harder to follow than the instructions she left her assistant to prep her hotel rooms.
Annemarie Wiley (Season 13)
Another friend puppet of Kyle Richards exited stage left after a lackluster first season in Annemarie Wiley. The most entertaining thing about the nurse anesthetist (and don’t get it twisted) was the pronunciation of her name, so the writing was on the wall early on regarding her potential return. Annemarie fans (they must exist somewhere, right?) would counter that she’s booked and busy with work and her problematic husband Marcellus who ranks her an eight out of 10. No need to wonder what they’re up to now since they’ve made themselves available to every Bravo podcast available to disparage their former castmates on air.
RHOA
DeShawn Snow (Season 1)
DeShawn was a founding mother of Atlanta and no one can take that away from her. She was also a basketball wife to NBA baller Eric Snow. Unfortunately, that title was taken away from her when Snow divorced her in 2010 for his mistress. Woof. More recently DeShawn was accused of real estate fraud… double woof.
Claudia Jordan (Season 7)
Who could forget Claudia Jordan and her scooped under bob? Since her memorable season sparring with HBIC Nene Leakes, Claudia has continued working in entertainment as an actress/personality/host, has recently looked 50 and fabulous on WWHL, and even said she would return to RHOA if asked.
Kim Fields (Season 8)
Raise your hand if you’ve been personally victimized by Kenya Moore: *Kim Fields raises hand*. The legendary Mrs. Fields did her best to keep up with the girls’ shady shenanigans but was ultimately too esteemed for Real Housewives-style mud-slinging. Much to Kenya’s disappointment, Kim is still a thriving actress and producer in Hollywood and happily married to her husband, Christopher.
Shamari DeVoe (Season 11)
Shamari originally bonded with Atlanta OG Kandi Burruss on their girl group roots as a member of Blaque. Since getting the boot, Shamari and her outspoken husband Ronnie have continued their pursuit of relevancy on multiple platforms including their latest reality series Unsung.
RHOC
Kimberly Bryant (Season 1)
Kimberly had a promising start as an ultra-wealthy RHOC Housewife who seemingly cut her own tenure short to focus on her health after a cancer scare. Kimberly has mostly stayed out of the spotlight since dumping the OC with her family for Chicago, where she advocates for skin cancer awareness.
Quinn Fry (Season 3)
Quinn was a SoCal woman of a certain age who lived for three things: v-necks, Jesus, and younger men. Can’t exactly fault her for any of those three but her oddball energy wasn’t made to last on the series.
Peggy Tanous (Season 6)
The first Peggy on OC was Alexis Bellino’s Barbie sidekick who rode the fence between her and Tamra and ultimately lost Alexis’ favor when it came out Peggy had dated Alexis’ starter husband Jim. Since briefly appearing on season 7, Peggy relocated to Texas but that hasn’t stopped her from appearing on about a million podcasts to talk about her Housewives experience. She was recently spotted hanging out with Gretchen Rossi in Orange County.
Lizzie Rovsek (Season 9)
In her first and final season, Lizzie went toe toe-to-toe with OC gangster Tamra Judge and even managed to incite Tamra’s barefoot sprint out of the infamous dinner in Bali. In 2020, Lizzie finally settled her amicable divorce with her ex and co-parent Christian. Lizzie still appears to spend plenty of time in Warrior 2.
Peggy Sulahian (Season 12)
The second Peggy in RHOC history never quite found her voice in the group, and when she did chime in, her contributions always seemed to be lost in translation e.g. physically shushing MKE mid-sentence. Since her departure, Peggy has remained together with her ostentatious husband Diko, and recently celebrated their daughter’s stunning Armenian wedding.
Elizabeth Vargas (Season 15)
The only OC housewife to serve big lacrosse coach energy was replaced by Heather DuBrow before viewers could finally hear how the sex was with her then-boyfriend that she insisted she would remain abstinent from until her divorce paperwork cleared. More recently, Elizabeth survived an abusive relationship with an extortionist but hopefully has some good news coming her way with the potential sale of her $9 million La Quinta home.
Jen Armstrong (Season 16)
The good-ish doctor got dragged all season long for her awkward marriage to her husband with a fake name (Ryne). Since the cameras dropped, the couple unsurprisingly filed for divorce, but Dr. Jen is still in love with cosmetic surgery — as long as the medical malpractice lawsuits filed against her don’t get in the way.
Noella Bergener (Season 16)
Orange County simply was not ready for a controversial BDSM mixed-race queen like Noella nor any of her absurdly entertaining antics. Noella has since legally sorted her messy fallout with Sweet James and seems to still be hot and heavy with her millionaire boyfriend Bobby Schubenksi. The chronically online community has also recently discovered Noella appeared in a Seeking Arrangement ad.
RHONJ
Amber Marchese (Season 6)
There are Bravo villains and then there are real-world villains, and thankfully Amber and Jim Marchese didn’t come back for a second season of RHONJ to show fans the difference.
Teresa & Nicole Napolitano (Season 6)
The Jersey twins gave the Gorgas and Giudices alike a run for their money until the show went on hiatus to accommodate Teresa’s prison sentence. Though Tre has since said she’d welcome the sisters back, the Napolitanos appear content staying off the radar to manage their multiple Italian restaurants.
RHOM
Cristy Rice (Season 1)
Cristy was one of the original party girls from the ancient Miami archives. Since then, the dancing queen has kept busy by spearheading her beachwear line Cuban Rice, with none other than her grown-up daughter Bri often serving as a model.
Karent Sierra (Season 2)
Karent was a member of the world’s most glamorous profession, dentistry, and used her permanent megawatt smile to drive her castmates crazy. Karent has long moved on from her delusional relationship with Latin soap star Rodolfo and is now satisfying her penchant for dogs by raising adorable golden doodle puppies.
Ana Quincoces (Season 2)
Marysol’s former bestie turned bully recently stirred up drama during her fleeting Mother’s Day appearance on the third season of the Miami reboot. The chef has also created a “Skinny Latina” hot sauce and hosts her podcast, Mami Issues, with her daughter Beba.
RHOD
Tiffany Hendra (Season 1)
The singer/model was an unlikely sidekick to LeeAnne Locken, but has remained a creative muse to her husband Aaron and has taken up career coaching after her season 1 departure.
Tiffany Moon (Season 5)
Justice for Dr. Tiffany Moon who only fell victim to the one-season wonder curse due to the franchise’s sudden cancellation. Dr. Moon stans who still need their fix can check out her anesthesia-themed candles, Three Moons wine line, or her very active social channels where she continues to share priceless medical insight.
RHOP
Katie Rost (Season 1)
Katie Rost isn’t a traditional one-season wonder considering she returned in subsequent seasons as a recurring friend of, but alas, it still counts. The irreverent single mom endured a tumultuous divorce and custody battle with her ex-husband James Orisini between seasons, yet has kept a positive outlook on life as a sober DJ in Miami (who’s not afraid to rock colored contacts), according to her Instagram.
RHOSLC
Jennie Nguyen (Season 2)
The taffeta and lace aficionado found herelf on the wrong end of Mary Cosby’s last nerve during her short time as a Salt Lake City Housewife. In addition to failing to earn much favor from her other castmates, Jennie was let go for her problematic Facebook posts after already beginning filming on season 3.
