Pixabay A Bravo star is leaving the Real Housewives.
A star from “The Real Housewives of Dubai” has decided she’s one season and done. Nina Ali, who was a cast member for the first season of the international-set Bravo reality show, has announced that she will not return for a second go-around, People magazine confirmed on January 30, 2023.
In a statement posted to Instagram, Ali, 43, wrote, “It was an honor to be a part of the debut season of “The Real Housewives of Dubai,” and to help @bravotv bring this beloved franchise to the city I call home.“
Ali thanked Bravo and Andy Cohen for the role in the franchise before noting that she has decided to focus on other opportunities in the New Year.
“2023 has already brought many exciting opportunities my way, including an emerging new business, new home and new adventures, so for now I’ll be moving my attention away from the show to allow myself the space to focus on new challenges,” the mom of three wrote.
Ali co-starred with Caroline Stanbury, Caroline Brooks, Chanel Ayan, Sara Al Madani, and Lesa Milan, who will begin filming season 2 in early 2023.
Nina Ali Described Herself as a “Peacemaker” on RHODubai
GettyReal Housewives of Dubai cast photo.
In 2021, Cohen announced the first-ever Bravo-produced international “Housewives” show and promised that it would “blow the lid off the entire franchise.” A press release teased a cast of “glamorous, successful women” who were “running their own empires, or hosting on a private island.”
In June 2022, Ali told Decider she has been a “Bravoholic” ever since “The Real Housewives of Orange County” made its debut in 2006.
She noted that it was Milan who recommended her for the show and that Stanbury, who had previous reality TV experience with the show “Ladies of London,” advised her to be “tough.” But he also came onto the franchise with an attitude that was different from that of many Housewives stars, who often have over-the-top fights on-camera.
“My role has always been peacemaker in any group that I’ve been in,” Ali said. “It just comes naturally. I sense tensions, and I want to defuse the situation. I don’t see anything positive about women arguing. I’m the friend everyone always talks to because I always see two sides to every story. …I try to calm things down instead of adding more fuel to the fire.”
Other Real Housewives Stars Have Announced Their Exits From Their Shows
GettyLisa Rinna of RHOBH.
Ali’s Real Housewives exit comes weeks after two stars from another city also announced they were stepping down.
In early January, Lisa Rinna announced her departure from “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.” Rinna told Interview magazine that she “knew” it was time to leave after the season 12 reunion taping. “Something has gotten to the Housewife Universe because of what’s going on in the world, and it’s reflected in the way the fans react to the world of Housewives,” she said. “And I just think it’s unhealthy. It wasn’t working for me. It wasn’t right for me.”
Shortly after Rinna’s announcement, her co-star Diana Jenkins announced she was leaving RHOBH to focus on her pregnancy.
Past Real Housewives stars who have quit their franchises include Cynthia Bailey, Caroline Manzo, Danielle Staub, NeNe Leakes, Dorinda Medley, Lisa Vanderpump, Heather Dubrow, Vicki Gunvalson, and Yolanda Hadid, according to TooFab.
In a November 2022 interview with Us Weekly, Cohen talked about stars who opt to leave the Real franchise on their own.
“Being on The Housewives, it’s something that I everyone who’s on the show I want them to be excited about being on the show and have a level of you know a desire to be on the show and feel great about it,” he said.
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