“The Real Housewives of Atlanta” may have reached the end of an era. The beloved installment in Bravo’s popular franchise has survived multiple shake-ups over the last few years, losing mainstays like Phaedra Parks, Nene Leakes, Cynthia Bailey, and more.
But the latest casting shakeup of Kenya Moore departing the show leaves us wondering what the show will look like moving forward, and if we are truly saying goodbye to the series we all fell in love with.
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As The Root reported, Moore announced her departure from the series earlier this week, deep in the middle of production for the show’s 16th season. With a retooled cast, Moore was announced alongside returning peach holders and newbies, with Porsha Williams and Shamea Morton Mwangi coming back into the fold, Drew Sidora and Moore returning from last season, Cynthia Bailey returning as a “friend” of the housewives and newbies Brittany Eady, Kelli Ferrell, and Angela Oakley joining.
This much-needed refresh felt like an exciting step in the right direction for viewers of the series, as dwindling ratings and middling fan reception plagued the last handful of seasons of ‘Atlanta.’
Moore’s sudden exit, however, leaves us in new territory for this series and for the franchise. Her controversial departure stems from a filmed event earlier this month where Moore allegedly revealed posters of Eady performing oral sex, as PEOPLE Magazine reported. While conflicting reports surrounding whether or not she truly exited the series or was fired continue to flood in, one thing is for certain: the show will not be the same without Moore, and housewives of her nature.
For years, these shows have been helped, in part, by polarizing figures — Housewives whom you love, hate, or even love to hate. Since she joined in season 5, Moore was featured heavily in this capacity on the show. Season after season, she stood as the one who wasn’t afraid to tell it like it is, to get her hands dirty in the sandbox that is reality TV, and to “move story” forward. Without this archetype of reality star, we would not have much to talk about.
On an Amazon Live, Kandi Burruss (who herself just departed the series after 15 years), spoke to this sentiment, saying that Moore’s exit will have a major impact on the series. “I feel like this is the end of an era,” she said. “I don’t care who disagrees. I feel like it’s the end of an era. It doesn’t matter if you didn’t like her or whatever. You always gonna need somebody who doesn’t mind being real and keeping it 100 on camera, pushing the story, meaning like bringing up things that other people are trying to avoid.”
As Burruss pointed out, these shows have thrived on stars who are willing to say what other people won’t and push the envelope, and Moore was certainly one of those housewives. In fact, for years the series was filled with housewives of that nature...the likes of Nene Leakes and Phaedra Parks, personalities who, perhaps due to the lack of social media presence that there is today, felt a bit bolder than the new wave of housewives we are seeing today.
But maybe this push towards the new (and a bit less dramatic) is a good thing for the overall health of the franchise...? Just last year, “The Real Housewives of New York” did a complete reboot — a first in the franchise’s history. After low ratings, a controversial 13th season, and a cast that just did not gel, the show relaunched with a fresh (and thankfully more diverse) representation of New York.
It’s hard to imagine “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” without Moore, just like it was hard to imagine the series without Leakes when she first left. But, with time, perhaps we will move through these growing pains and a new Atlanta will be born. Will the show have less shocking drama and polarizing antics?
Perhaps...but maybe, from the ashes of the old “RHOA,” a new show will arise with something fresh to offer. While we wait, however, we mourn the days of “Gone with the Wind Fabulous,” “Bye Wig,” and “Who Gon’ Check Me Boo?” ...which may truly, finally, be gone forever.
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