NeNe Leakes is reportedly making her return to Bravo six years after she exited The Real Housewives of Atlanta.
NeNe, 58, however, won’t be coming back as part of season 17 of RHOA. Instead, the actress will be part of Bravo’s upcoming series The Real Housewives: Ultimate Road Trip, TMZ reported on Tuesday, January 13.
NeNe, who was last seen on season 12 of RHOA in 2020, will not be a full-time cast member on the spinoff, per the outlet. She will, however, have a “notable presence” when Ultimate Road Trip makes its way to Atlanta, where NeNe lives.
While the show will include an unnamed list of Housewives stopping in different locations throughout the U.S., NeNe is reportedly only going to be featured during the Georgia portion of the road trip.
Not all Real Housewives give up their diamonds — or peaches/apples — for good. Bethenny Frankel, NeNe Leakes and Dina Manzo are among the ladies who left their respective franchises only to return years later. While Bethenny, NeNe and Dina all returned in a full-time role, other women, including Camille Grammer and Danielle Staub, made […]
Us Weekly has reached out to NeNe’s rep and Bravo for comment.
The Real Housewives: Ultimate Road Trip was previously announced by Andy Cohen during 2025 BravoCon. At the time, Cohen, 57, didn’t share the cast list but teased a crossover of epic proportions.
“Guys, Ultimate Girls Trip is back and it’s on Bravo coming in 2026. It’s The Real Housewives: Ultimate Road Trip celebrating 20 years of the Real Housewives,” he revealed in November 2025. “We will have iconic Housewives taking the road trip of a lifetime to the Housewives’ cities where they will be joined by iconic Housewives past and present from the span of two decades.”
Cohen promised fans, “This is going to rock your world.”
The Real Housewives of Atlanta has said goodbye to many cast members since its Bravo debut in 2008 — but there’s always a chance they could return. For instance, original RHOA star NeNe Leakes left the show in season 7 before rejoining the cast in 2018. “It’s been a long process but we’ve finally reached […]
The spinoff is the latest iteration of The Real Housewives: Ultimate Girls Trip, which began in November 2021 and featured different women from the Real Housewives franchises traveling together for lavish and wild vacations.
“For two decades, The Real Housewives has amplified women’s voices, spotlighted their ambition, humor, and strength, inspiring millions with their unapologetic authenticity,” Bravo and Peacock Unscripted chairman Frances Berwick said in a November 2025 statement. “The Real Housewives: Ultimate Road Trip is a love letter to the women who turned a reality television show into a cultural phenomenon — and the fans who’ve been there for every laugh, gasp, toast, and table turn.”
The new show will show a yet-to-be announced cast starting out in Orange County, California, home of the original Real Housewives series. The women will end up on the East Coast with several stops along the way.
NeNe, for her part, is one of the most iconic Housewives in history, having been part of the Real Housewives of Atlanta cast when it debuted in 2008.
She was on the show for seven seasons before opting out of season 8. NeNe returned for a cameo on seasons 10 and 12 before leaving the franchise for good in 2020.
NeNe has since teased a possible return to RHOA and the Bravo universe on more than one occasion.
“I don’t know, if the opportunity was right and the check was on point, why not?” NeNe told TMZ in January 2025 when asked if she’d ever pick up her peach again.
Six months later, NeNe revealed that if she came back, it would have to be in a full-time capacity.
“If I were to ever step back on that platform, would I be [the] friend? I really kind of feel like I don’t know that I would be a friend,” she confessed during a July 2025 episode of the “Humble Brag” podcast. “I just would think, NeNe, season 1, the first Housewife, and I’m a friend? I don’t know.”
When rumors about season 17 cast of RHOA surfaced in August 2025, fans were excited and optimistic that NeNe would finally be a Housewife again. However, she quickly shut down the speculation and claimed producers didn’t reach out to her. (Us Weekly previously reached out to Bravo for comment.)
“They have NEVER offered me to return!” NeNe alleged via an Instagram comment written on RealityBlurb’s Instagram story about the upcoming season.
NeNe hinted that she was OK with the situation, adding, “Good luck to season 17 cast. We will be watching 👏.”
