After a season that left friendships fractured and tensions running high, Heather Dubrow decided someone needed to bring the group back together. As the “Real Housewives of Orange County” returns for Season 20 on Bravo, the longtime cast member is revealing how she tried to move the women past the “disarray” and start with a clean slate. Check out the details below in our “RHOC” spoilers.
Dubrow Talks ‘RHOC’ Season 20
Durbow, 57, attended the reality TV show’s Season 20 premiere party along with her costars, which included Tamra Judge, Gina Kirschenheiter, and Jennifer Pedranti.
During that premiere party, she spoke with PEOPLE and said filming this latest season of “Real Housewives of Orange County” was “very difficult.” However, she did admit there were a ton of wonderful memories made in the process.
Dubrow said, “I really love the girls’ trips because I had never been on a girls’ trip until I came on the show. Even with the drama and everything, there is a lot of camaraderie that happens.”
Speaking of drama, Heather admitted their “group was in a bit of disarray” at the end of Season 19. So, she took on a mission.
She said, “My goal was to bring everyone together, like I usually do, and say, ‘Let’s start fresh. Let’s get together, let’s have a little fun, and let’s put things aside. If you’re bothered or you have issues, let’s put them aside.’”
‘The Last Nail In the Coffin’
We will see how that all plays out as “RHOC” Season 20 airs this season. However, it sounds like Dubrow was hesitant to even join the cast at the beginning.
She thought joining the Bravo series was “going to be the last nail in the coffin of what had been my career.” Before “Real Housewives,” Dubrow had played a few onscreen roles. This included the main character, Lydia DeLucca, in the CBS drama “That’s Life.”
When she joined the Bravo series in 2012, there were “no actresses” on “Real Housewives.” Dubrow said, “It was so looked down upon for an actor to be on reality.”
However, she made the leap and made her debut during Season 7 of “RHOC.” She left after a five-season run, but then she returned for Season 16 in 2021 and has been a main cast member ever since.
Dubrow’s Family Life
Of course, Heather is married to Terry Dubrow. The couple shares four children: twins Max and Nick, 22; Kat, 19; and Ace, 15. Max came out as bisexual in June 2020.
Then in 2021, their younger daughter, Kat, came out as a lesbian. In March 2023, Heather shared that their youngest child had come out as transgender and goes by the name Ace.
She told PEOPLE, “I have four healthy, great kids and our family — knock on wood — everyone seems to be in a good spot right now. I think the most important thing is to stay in our community and keep talking to each other and reaching out to friends and making sure people are good.”
This is another reason she loves being on “Real Housewives of Orange County.” She said it’s been “so important” to be able to connect with people and “start conversations” about her family, especially when it comes to advocating for the LGBTQ community.
