The Big Picture
- New housewives often make the mistake of trying to act like what they think a real housewife should be, but fans quickly see through the fakeness.
- Mia Thornton has yet to show genuine emotions on the show, constantly coming off as phony due to her lies about her age, work, and more.
- Poor casting choices extend to the friends of the housewives as well, as seen with Askale Davis and Jacqueline’s failed attempts to bring drama to the series.
The cycling through of cast members is normal for all the Real Housewives series. New ladies come and go to add to the drama of interpersonal relationships. With all the changes in the various franchises, there have certainly been hits and misses. When television icon Kim Fields joined The Real Housewives of Atlanta, many scratched their heads at the odd choice. And it was clear that Kim was a fish out of water in comparison to the other housewives, as she did not return after completing her first and only season. Bravo’s attempt to diversify the original RHONY cast also blew up in their faces, as accusations of racism from the other housewives became a problem.
The most recent RHOSLC casting decisions have proven to be a good move on the part of the network, but this is primarily thanks to Jen Shah. Jen Shah’s current imprisonment for federal fraud charges led the producers to Monica Garcia, a former assistant of Jen’s. Monica has added an excellent level of chaos to the series thanks to her turbulent mommy issues and her light scamming abilities. RHOP also had a great track record of bringing in new housewives. In fact, when it comes to casting mistakes, the first one they made was adding the then-unmarried Robyn Dixon to the mix. Monique Samuels was the first new addition to the series, joining in the second season, and her desperation for fame and insecurities were apparent. Candiace Dillard joined the cast in the following season, and her shady pageant queen clap-backs added another layer of fun drama into the mix.
The Real Housewives of Potomac
- Release Date
- January 17, 2016
- Cast
- Gizelle Bryant, Karen Huger, Robyn Dixon, Ashley Darby
- Main Genre
- Reality TV
- Genres
- Reality TV
- Rating
- TV-14
- Seasons
- 8
New ‘RHOP’ Cast Members Always Come Off as Phony
The first mistake a new housewife or friend makes when joining a series is trying to front and act like what they believe a real housewife is. They come in purposefully messy, and it’s so obvious that fans are quickly over it. These reasons are why Mia Thornton has remained so unlikeable. She has yet to show true, genuine feelings on the show, at least from the viewers’ perspective. Mia comes off phony because she is phony, as has lied enough to prove as much. She’s lied about her age, her work, and more. Her nasty attitude has nothing to back it up, and what’s more annoying is that other green-eyed cast members take up for her, even though she is often the problem. What would happen if she did decide to respond to situations organically?
A great example of that is Angie Katsenevas on RHOSLC. At the beginning of the season, she was extremely unlikeable, but since situations have recently arisen that have taken her out of her “Real Housewives” mindset, she has become more palatable. Fan tweets have come out surprised that they are actually liking her more now. That’s all because she was forced to stop curating her responses. Mia has yet to do that, and based on what fans have seen from her, that isn’t going to change any time soon.
New RHOP star Nneka Ihim has only been seen in two of the three episodes seen this season so far, and she has already proven herself to be trying hard to fit the housewife mold. She bonded with Robyn in the third episode by telling some nonsensical story about her family and Wendy’s family being at odds and that Wendy’s mother allegedly hexed her family. It made no sense and was clearly an effort to diss Wendy and stir the pot. Nneka should know that coming for a beloved housewife like Wendy will never work. Here’s hoping she gets the Karen Huger acquaintance handshake the whole season.
Poor casting doesn’t just apply to the main cast; it also happens when bringing in new Friends of the housewives. In season 6, Askale Davis joined the series as a friend of Robyn’s. There wasn’t anything particularly offensive about or from Askale; she just over-curated her image. She was, to be frank, boring to watch, as she was quiet and stayed away from the drama for the most part. It was no surprise that she opted not to return to the series. And then, of course, there is Jacqueline, who came in as Mia’s friend. The phrase “birds of a feather flock together?” Jacqueline and Mia are definitely birds in every sense of the word. The weird rumors surrounding threesomes and Mia’s marriage were a stupid plot line, as all of it felt unnecessary. Jacqueline’s presence in the series, combined with the drama, was likely to give Mia a plot that would work. Alas, it did not.
The number one rule these casting failures seem to miss is “be yourself.” Fans fell in love with NeNe Leakes because she was being her most authentic self. The same works for everyone involved with the Real Housewives franchises.
Season 8 of RHOP is currently airing on Bravo every Sunday at 8 PM EST. Next-day streaming is available on Peacock.
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Khushi Patel is a science fiction author who lives in Austin, Texas. She has published three novels, and her work has been praised for its originality and imagination. Khushi is a graduate of Rice University, and she has worked as a software engineer. She is a member of the Science Fiction Writers of America, and her books have been nominated for several awards.
