The Real Housewives of Atlanta is the third incarnation of the Bravo hit reality franchise, following Orange County and New York. What sets Atlanta apart is the diversity, as nearly all the housewives this time are African-American. Real estate entrepreneur NeNe Leakes got off to a rocky start on the show when she was blacklisted from Sheree Whitfield’s fancy party.
BuddyTV spoke to NeNe Leakes about her decision to participate on The Real Housewives of Atlanta, dealing with her new celebrity status, what the cameras didn’t show, which of the other housewives she’s closest with now, and her future plans in television. Continue reading to listen to our exclusive interview and to read the full transcript.
Why did you decide to agree to be on this show in the first place?
Well, when I was asked to do the show, before ever doing the Real Housewives I’ve already done some TV and film before. And then having my real estate company with my husband and my foundation and all the things that I have my hands into, I thought it would be a great way to get my name and my face and my businesses out there.
Has your life changed in any way because of this show?
Wow, it has. I get a lot of love when I leave the house. Everywhere I go somebody knows who I am, so that has definitely changed. I used to could run to the grocery store with my hair in a ponytail and look a hot mess, but now I have to put on lip gloss.
How do you feel you have been portrayed? Do you think it’s an accurate portrayal of yourself on the show?
It is, it is very accurate. Some of it I’m not so happy about. You guys saw me in that earlier episode get really upset at Sheree’s party, that was very true. But I think for the most part they have portrayed me correctly.
Has there been anything where you’ve seen it and you wished they showed more, or like you remember something happening and wondered why they didn’t show that because it would have informed more of what was happening?
Yes, when we left Sheree’s party, when I didn’t get in but Kim’s name was on the list, after we left the party Kim and I went to a restaurant to have dinner and talk about the whole Sheree fiasco. I didn’t like the fact that they didn’t — well, they later showed it on the BravoTV.com — but Kim was really talking a lot of mess about Sheree. I wish they had shown that. I think things would have been different.
Your relationship with the other housewives, how is that on the show versus now off the show? Has it stayed roughly the same or did being on the show sort of change the dynamics?
Well, our relationships have changed since filming the show. I think our alliances kind of switch all the time. I don’t know, it’s like having five sisters and we all fussing and we switch it up. During the show, a lot of people see me being really close to Kim, but then towards the end I’m really close with DeShawn. The alliances kind of change and right now I’m closest to Lisa. Things just change. Sheree and I are cordial. We were really mad at each other where we didn’t even speak to each other in the beginning, but we are cordial now.
Are you interested in doing another season or continuing this?
Absolutely, I’m interested in doing another season, I’m also interested in having my own show.
What would your show look like?
I would hope to do a talk show. I would love to do a talk show, something that is fun and funny, people could really come on and be themselves and we could really get down and talk, really dirty. Not the whole conservative shit like Oprah or Tyra. I want to do something else. Something funny, maybe along the lines of Chelsea Lately.
The Real Housewives of Atlanta airs on Bravo Tuesday nights at 10pm.
Also Check Out:
Exclusive Interview with Sheree Whitfield
-Interview conducted by John Kubicek
(Image courtesy of Bravo)
Senior Writer, BuddyTV
John watches nearly every show on TV, but he specializes in sci-fi/fantasy like The Vampire Diaries, Supernatural and True Blood. However, he can also be found writing about everything from Survivor and Glee to One Tree Hill and Smallville.
