Heavy/Bravo "The Real Housewives of Atlanta" cast has been confirmed.
A “Real Housewives” franchise has officially gotten a makeover. After weeks of speculation about the Atlanta cast, Bravo has announced who will be a part of season 16 — and who will not.
Porsha Williams, Kenya Moore, and Drew Sidora will all reprise their full-time roles on the show, according to a press release obtained by Heavy. Meanwhile, Brittany Eady, Kelli Ferrell, Shamea Morton Mwangi, and Angela Oakley will receive their official peaches when the show returns.
Additionally, former Atlanta star Cynthia Bailey will return in a friend-of role. Bailey left in 2021 after 11 seasons as a full-time star. She returned for season 15 as a guest, but will have a larger role for season 16.
The women not returning to the cast include Marlo Hampton, Kandi Burruss, and Sanya Richards-Ross, which most fans already knew about. The one woman not returning that hadn’t previously been announced is Shereé Whitfield.
“This season brings a new attitude and fresh perspective as the journey continues for these triumphant housewives as they cultivate new friendships and flourish in their careers and social circles,” reads Bravo’s press release.
Season 16 of “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” will begin filming in May 2024 and will premiere in 2025.
Here’s what you need to know:
Fans Reacted to the Casting News on Reddit
Overall, “Real Housewives of Atlanta” fans seem to have mixed reactions about the casting changes.
“Major changes! Happy to see Porsha and Cynthia Back. I would have loved to see see Phaedra though,” one person wrote.
“This cast is… interesting. Intrigued by what a full time Shamea will look like,” someone else added.
“CYNTHIA IS BACK? Just fell to my knees. I don’t care what anyone says, I missed Cynthia. She had her funny moments. Also good riddance to she by charade! she doesn’t know how to play the game and you see it with every season,” a third comment read.
“Not excited for this at all – getting rid of Sheree was not a smart move. Drew brings drama but it feels like a C list soap opera and isn’t entertaining to watch. Shamea has been a hanger on rather than a peach holder for over a decade for a reason. Hopefully the new girls bring it I guess,” a fourth Redditor said.
Andy Cohen Previously Teased a Cast Reboot
After Kandi Burruss announced that she would not be returning for season 16, executive producer Andy Cohen addressed the reboot chatter on SiriusXM’s Andy Cohen Live.
“I talked a lot about Kandi yesterday and I think Kandi’s leaving ‘Housewives of Atlanta’ is now having everyone saying, ‘Well, what is happening with ‘Housewives of Atlanta?’ Why aren’t we getting an update? What’s going on?’ and so, and I didn’t want to talk about it,” Cohen admitted at the time.
“I do want to say I’m not announcing anything, but we are on it and the casting is superb and it’s funny because I saw casting last week and last week I was thinking, ‘Okay, this is gonna be great. We have a sense,’” he added.
Cohen has yet to comment on the new cast.
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