Former ‘Real Housewives of Atlanta’ star NeNe Leakes has filed a scathing discrimination lawsuit against Bravo and Andy Cohen, and now she’s claiming that the network had her ‘blacklisted’ after she spoke out against them.
Leakes, who had been a mainstay on Bravo for over a decade, revealed that her lawsuit against the network had been a long time coming and that it “felt like it was the right time … a few years ago.”
RHOA: NeNe Leakes Says She Was ‘Blacklisted’ By Bravo As She Sues Network For Discrimination
The reality star insisted that she was hesitant to vocalize her allegations of racism that she experienced during her time on Bravo because she was “constantly being retaliated against, being blacklisted, not able to work, being silenced, and so, you know, it was difficult to do.”
Leakes also took to social media to double-down on her claims by updating her Twitter bio to say, “BLACKLISTED TV PERSONALITY & ENTREPRENEUR” and ““BLACKLISTED FOR TELLING THE TRUTH & NOT WANTING TO BE ABUSED ANYMORE! RECEIPTSSS” on Instagram.
It has long been suspected by viewers and other Bravo personalities that NeNe has had it out for the network because she wasn’t given her own spin-off series, but NeNe refutes those claims. In fact, she says that she had “many opportunities” to have her own show even though she “never wanted one”.
NeNe’s stance on having a spinoff is a stark contrast to what she said a few years prior, when she seemed aggravated that her former ‘RHOA’ co-star Kandi Burrus has had several spin-off shows air on Bravo. “I think me not having my own show has been due to certain people not wanting me to have a show. I have gone to Bravo about different show ideas. Why only one person gets to do a show every season after our show is weird,” she previously.
When talking to TMZ about why she never had a full series of her own, NeNe simply said, “It’s discrimination — that’s just what it is.”
NeNe was once on the fast track to breaking out of the reality TV mold and becoming a mainstream star. She landed a recurring role on Ryan Murphy’s hit show ‘Glee’ before securing a spot on the sitcom ‘The New Normal’ in 2012, which was canceled after only one season. NeNe also scored a coveted role on ‘Fashion Police’ from 2016 to 2017. NeNe blames Bravo’s alleged blacklisting for suddenly “not working” after several years of being “sought after”.
NeNe Leakes is suing Bravo, among other networks, for allegedly experiencing racism while filming the ‘Real Housewives of Atlanta’ for several seasons. According to the lawsuit, “NBC, Bravo, and True foster a corporate and workplace culture in which racially-insensitive and inappropriate behavior is tolerated — if not, encouraged.
