Lisa Rinnais bidding farewell toThe Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.
After eight seasons of delivering sassy one-liners, drama-filled moments, social media messiness and self-deprecating lip humor, Rinna is departing the beloved franchise, PEOPLE can exclusively confirm.
“This is the longest job I have held in my 35 year career and I am grateful to everyone at Bravo and all those involved in the series,” Rinna, 59, says in a statement. “It has been a fun eight-year run and I am excited for what is to come!”
The decision was made as Rinna’s contract expired at the end of last season. After weighing her options and business obligations, she and Bravo mutually decided that she would not return toRHOBH.
Rinna joined the franchise in its fifth season, which premiered in 2014. In her debut season, the actress was involved inone of the show’s most memorable fightswhen she hurled a wine glass at then-costar Kim Richards, who’d alluded Rinna didn’t want something to get out about her husbandHarry Hamlin.
Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank/Getty
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But Rinna’s exit likely doesn’t come as a surprise toRHOBHfans. Even though she’s compared herself to a “cockroach” you “can’t get rid of,” she dropped major hints about the possibility throughout season 8.
Posting a pre-Housewivesthrowback photo on her Instagram Story, Rinna wrote: “I was Lisa F—ing Rinna before HW and I’ll be Lisa F—ing Rinna After.” She then followed this with lyrics from “Roxie” beside an image ofRenée Zellwegerin 2002’sChicago, which is a role Rinna also portrayed on Broadway in 2007.
Lisa Rinna.Cindy Ord/Bravo/Getty
“I’m a star! And the audience loves me! And I love them. And they love me for loving them. And I love them for loving me. And we love each other. And that’s because none of us got enough love in our childhoods. And that’s showbiz, kid,” the image read.
“I have had a really rough timeof it I think you’ve seen how hard this has hit me,” she wrote in July ina since-deleted Instagram post. I’m sorry if I’ve raged on you, about you — it really has nothing to do with any of you."
The cast of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills season 12.Tommy Garcia/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty
She thencriticizedRHOBHfor failing to properly memorialize Lois, instead focusing on trivial drama from the previous season that resurfaced. “I got one episode of grace. That’s it,” Rinna wrote. “Lois deserved and deserves much more. Shame on everyone.”
On the latest season ofRHOBH, the Rinna Beauty founder raised her voice repeatedly atSutton Strackeafter her costar claimed tohave never received a thank youfor purchasing Rinna and husband Harry Hamlin’s tickets forElton John’s annual charity benefit.
Later, fans — and currentRHOBHstars — took issue with how Rinna continued to leverage overKathy Hilton’s alleged meltdownduring the cast’s Aspen trip.
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“I got booed! It was fabulous,” Rinna told PEOPLE exclusively. “I’m like a wrestler. The wrestlers get booed. The most famous wrestlers in the world get booed.The Rock[Dwayne Johnson] got booed for God’s sake. I loved it. I’ve been in this business for 32 years.”
source: people.com
