Heavy/NBCUniversal Southern Charm news
The 9th season of “Southern Charm,” which premiered on September 14, is the first one without OG star Kathryn Dennis, who’s been a staple on the show since it first aired in 2014.
While speaking with The Messenger ahead of the premiere, several of the show’s female cast members spoke about the different dynamics in the group given Dennis’ absence. “I definitely think Kathryn was the one person that was kind of closer to the guys than maybe all of us, aside from Taylor [Ann Green] actually dating one of the guys,” Leva Bonaparte shared.
“I think it allowed for more of a ladies kumbaya because there wasn’t Kathryn with the guys,” she added. Green said they “miss her drama” but said that the women were generally a lot closer this season without Dennis around. “We got to have just a real solidified group of girls being like, this is the first time that we’ve actually been really together because I feel like there was always a little bit of a disconnect,” she added. “I think that the girls are genuinely here to help build each other up and get each other through all of our s***.”
As it stands, Green and Olivia Flowers are the exes of Shep Rose and Austen Kroll respectively, and none of the female cast members are dating their male counterparts.
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Olivia Flowers & Shep Rose Said They Felt Kathryn Dennis’ Decision Was the Best for Her
Flowers agreed with Green’s assessment that Dennis would be missed on the show and expressed hope that she could make a return in the future. “I do still keep up with her every once in a while,” she shared with The Messenger. “I think I always will. She was like a big sister coming into this.”
However, she said she understood Dennis’ desire to focus on her family away from the spotlight. “It does give her more time to focus on what’s important to her right now,” Flowers explained. “And I know she’s an icon here, she’s an OG, she’s very missed. But I think taking priority of things that are important right now, hopefully we’ll see her again. I don’t see why not.”
Rose was on the same page as Flowers and said her exit “might be best for her, personally.” He pointed out that “Southern Charm” fans have seen a lot of Dennis’ ups and downs over the years, especially concerning her children, and said, “I can’t pretend to know how impactful that is to your life, or hurtful it is that you can’t see them and things like that. So some things you’ve got to place more importance on. I think she did, and I’m proud of her for that.”
Kathryn Dennis Announced Her Exit From ‘Southern Charm’ in January 2023 Ahead of Season 9
Dennis announced her departure from the show in January 2023 as the 9th season began filming. She described to People her 10 years on the show as a “wild ride” and said she’d gone through a lot living her 20s in the reality TV world.
The mother of two said she wanted to focus on the next chapter of her life and was excited for the future. Her comments came a few months after she shared with People during BravoCon 2022 that she was “focusing on building a better life for me, for them [children Kensie and Saint] and our family.”
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