Former Real Housewives of Atlanta star NeNe Leakes is suing NBCUniversal and Bravo, claiming they helped to foster a racist work environment, among other allegations, according to a shocking new report.
The Associated Press reveals that NeNe has notified the parties of the lawsuit and that production company Truly Original and Real Housewives executive producer Andy Cohen are also listed as defendants.
In her claim, NeNe specifically mentions former RHOA co-star Kim Zolciak-Biermann, but she was mysteriously left off the defendants list, making this suit even more confusing.
“The lawsuit filed in federal court in Atlanta says Leakes, who is Black, complained to executives about years of racist remarks from fellow housewife Kim Zolciak-Biermann, who is white, but that only Leakes suffered consequences,” reads the AP report.
According to NeNe’s suit, Kim had made multiple racist comments around and to her while filming the show, but the network never acted. “NBC, Bravo and True foster a corporate and workplace culture in which racially-insensitive and inappropriate behavior is tolerated – if not, encouraged,” the documents state. Kim was eventually let go after a disastrous Season 10 reunion performance in which the women confronted her and she yelled at Andy in a bathroom.
According to NeNe’s suit and the AP report, here are some of the instances she is referencing:
- When asked to attend a barbecue during the filming of Season 1, Kim is accused of saying something along the lines of “I don’t want to sit around with NeNe and eat chicken.”
- During Season 5, Kim received a tour of Kandi Burruss’ new house and made multiple “racially offensive and stereotypical” comments. Viewers will remember that Kim referred to Kandi’s neighbourhood as the “ghetto.”
- Kim allegedly used the N-word to refer to NeNe and the other Housewives after a dispute. No timeframe for this allegation is listed in the AP report.
Again, while Kim is specifically mentioned in the lawsuit, NeNe did not list her as a defendant. The suit alleges that despite all the evidence against Kim, the network still proceeded with eight seasons of her spinoff show, Don’t Be Tardy.
“From the day the series began filming, NeNe was the target of systemic racism from co-star Kim Zolciak-Biermann, which was tolerated by Bravo executive producer Andy Cohen and other executives,” Leakes’ attorney said in a statement.
Longtime Bravo fans will remember that at one time, NeNe and Kim were set to star in their own RHOA spinoff together while it now appears likely that the former will never return to the network.
As this is a developing story, we’ll keep you posted.
The Real Housewives of Atlanta returns with Season 14 this May on Bravo — without NeNe Leakes.