Former Real Housewives of Potomac star Monique Samuels and her husband of 11 years, Chris Samuels, are separating. Monique, 39, filed for divorce from the former NFL player, 45, according to PEOPLE, who claimed they received confirmation from the Montgomery County Family Court. She reportedly filed to dissolve their marriage on April 14, and then filed a second complaint for their separation to become legal on June 15. Although the divorce has not yet been finalized, the couple reportedly has a hearing on Wednesday, June 21.
The report comes about eight months after PEOPLE originally claimed Monique and Chris’ marriage was over. Neither Monique nor Chris has publicly commented on the report of their impending divorce. The soon-to-be exes share three kids: sons Christopher and Chase, and daughter Milani. They originally tied the knot in Oct. 2012.
Although they had some marital issues during the first season of Love & Marriage: DC, which debuted in May 2022, Monique previously said The Real Housewives of Potomac helped her marriage during a July 2022 interview with Entertainment Tonight. “People always say that reality TV tears your marriage down. What people don’t realize is that Real Housewives of Potomac actually in some ways saved my marriage. Chris and I, before we started filming that show, we were in a really rough place,” she explained.
“We had lost all of the dating in our marriage. Once we started filming reality TV, it actually helped us because it forced us to date. So we were able to get out, just reignite that intimacy and be excited about each other,” she added. “So I will not lie, season two RHOP saved my marriage.”
Although her marriage was at that point “saved,” Monique addressed the fact that she had similar complaints about her husband and their partnership during the Bravo show and Love & Marriage. “And at the end of the day, sometimes you still have to come back to those moments. Because some of the things that I expressed on Love & Marriage: DC, people who watched Potomac saw I had those same concerns back then. So it’s not like this is something new,” she noted.
Monique announced she was leaving Potomac in Dec. 2020, after an intense Season 5 that included her being involved in a physical altercation with Candiace Dillard. A month later, she confirmed she would “never” return. Monique revealed she and her husband joined Love & Marriage in Feb. 2022.
Chris has not appeared on Monique’s Instagram feed since Dec. 2022, and she did not wish him a happy Father’s Day in 2023. Furthermore, Chris did not wish Monique a happy Mother’s Day and unfollowed her company, Not for Lazy Moms.