After 11 seasons on The Real Housewives of Atlanta, Cynthia Bailey is moving on from the Bravo franchise. The longtime alum of the series announced her decision on Sept. 27 with a lengthy Instagram post, where she also hinted that her venture into reality television may not be over for good with her exit. “After much thought and consideration, I have made the very difficult and heartfelt decision not to return for the next season of Real Housewives of Atlanta,” she wrote. “Thank you NBC Universal, Bravo, Truly Original for over a decade of partnership. I can’t wait to see what we do next!”
Cynthia added, “Thank you to my Real Housewives of Atlanta castmates for eleven of the most unbelievable years of my life; and the most incredible and UNFORGETTABLE memories! I am so grateful to have had this amazing journey and I am anxiously waiting to embark on new adventures.” Of course, Cynthia also shouted out the fans of the show. “I could not have done it without your blessings, love and support,” she gushed. “Without the fans, none of this would be possible. I love and appreciate all of you.”
She concluded her message by letting everyone know that she’s “looking forward to sharing” her “next chapter” with them. However, she did not specify exactly what she has planned and coming up next. Cynthia made her debut on RHOA during season 3 in 2010. She has been a regular cast member on the series ever since, concluding with season 13, which aired at the end of 2020 and beginning of 2021.
Bravo has yet to confirm which other cast member will and won’t be back for season 14. In addition to Cynthia, season 13 featured Kandi Burruss, Kenya Moore, Porsha Williams and Drew Sidora as main cast members. Earlier this year, it was rumored that both Cynthia and Porsha may not be returning, but when Andy Cohen was asked about the rumors in August, he played coy. “I just threw out a little piece of paper of who I believe the cast will be,” he teased. “I am not going to show you.” However, he did confirm that there were six names on his predicted list.
Cynthia’s arc on season 13 of RHOA featured the weeks leading up to her wedding to Mike Hill in October 2020. Her bachelorette party was documented on the show, following months of rumors about what allegedly went down with a stripper during the wild weekend. Quite a note to end on, right?!