Lisa Rinna revealed that death threats from fans, and a message from her late mom Lois, inspired her to quit The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills after eight seasons. “I think the world itself has gotten so volatile that the response doesn’t match what we’re doing,” the former Bravo star said in an interview with ES Magazine published May 25. “I didn’t want to live like that. I don’t think that’s healthy,” Lisa added. “The way the fan base reacts to the show now is not how it was when I first started.”
“I mean, we were getting death threats,” she said. “Some of the most horrible things I’ve ever seen in print in my life, and it’s a reality show! It’s a stupid show! I thought: ‘It’s time to go.’ I’m not sure how much longer that can exist in the zeitgeist, to be honest with you.”
Lisa explained that she decided to leave the show after she had a dream about her mom Lois, who died in November 2021, while Lisa was in the midst of filming season 12 of the show. “She came to me. It’s so wild, because half the world will believe this, half the world will say: ‘That’s so weird,’ ” Lisa said. “I was sleeping and I heard her say to me: ‘It’s time for you to go.’ I told a psychic and she said: ‘Oh yeah, she’s come to me and told me that. She wants you to be happy and follow your dream, but she says it’s time for you to go.’ I’ve never told anybody that, except for the psychic. I’m guided by my mom, for sure.”
Lisa announced her exit from RHOBH on January 5, after a drama-filled season where she feuded with fan-favorite Kathy Hilton. Lisa later clarified that the time away from the franchise was not what she’d term a “pause.” “It’s time for a break,” she told Interview on January 13. “Not a pause, I don’t go on pause. You don’t put me on pause. I go bye-bye.” Fans didn’t know if Lisa quit or was fired by Bravo until Andy Cohen set the record straight in his new book, The Daddy Diaries: The Year I Grew Up. Andy revealed that Lisa quit the show after the season 12 reunion filmed, and then she tried changing her mind a few weeks later, but Bravo decided to part ways with the former soap star after she got booed at BravoCon 2022.
“I think [Lisa] should go on pause but absolutely come back,” Andy wrote in his book. “Feels like she has a toxic relationship with the show at this point, and taking a breath away could do everyone good.” Lisa’s rep told HollywoodLife that her team never discussed being “on pause” with Bravo, and she “still does not regret” her decision to quit.