NeNe Leakes has been absent from Bravo since 2020, when she exited “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” after season 12. Now, a new report says the reality television legend is headed back to the network for “The Real Housewives: Ultimate Road Trip.”
Insiders told TMZ that Leakes’ appearance on the show is a done deal. However, she won’t be on the show as a full-time cast member. Despite this, the production source told the outlet that the former RHOA star will have a notable presence.
As has been reported, TMZ was told that “Ultimate Road Trip” will feature cameos from several current and former “Real Housewives” stars. The show will feature the ladies traveling to various cities to represent different “Housewives” franchises. Notably, it also serves as a celebration of the franchise’s upcoming 20th anniversary.
It Was Previously Reported that Nene Leakes Was In Talks
GettyBravo first announced “The Real Housewives: Ultimate Road Trip” at BravoCon in November 2025. Several rumored cast members were mentioned following the announcement. Page Six reported in December 2025 that Leakes was “in talks” to appear on “The Real Housewives: Ultimate Road Trip.”
The outlet also noted that the show was set to film in January 2026. This comes after she announced her exit from “The Real Housewives of Atlanta” in September 2020. Per Page Six, she said at the time, “I have been on an extremely, extremely long, exhausting, tiring, emotional negotiation.
There’s been a lot of emotion flying from both sides. It has been hard, and I have made the very hard and very difficult decision to not be a part of ‘Real Housewives of Atlanta,’ Season 13. It wasn’t an easy decision for me; it was hard.”
Leakes, who was an original cast member on the show, said, “I’m just so happy that I can say that I was a part of a genre that opened up doors for black ensemble reality shows.”
Vicki Gunvalson Previously Confirmed Her Casting
Bravo hasn’t confirmed the casting for “The Real Housewives: Ultimate Road Trip.” However, “Real Housewives of Orange County” star Vicki Gunvalson recently stated that she was on the show during an appearance on “The Viall Files.”
They asked when filming for RHOC season 20 would begin. She said, “I think it’s mid-February. We don’t have an exact date yet, but it’ll be mid-February. And then I’m gonna do the girls’ trip like four days before that. And a little caveat, so I’m going on the Girls’ Trip January 18th through the end of January, and then I head to Mexico from New York.”
