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Nene Leakes Not Returning For ‘Real Housewives of Atlanta,’ Producers Concerned About Show’s Future?

By Maurice Cassidy
Published on: 20:59 PST, Jul 18, 2016

Nene Leakes will not be returning to the Real Housewives of Atlanta, it has been revealed.

The reality star, who was once said to have been the highest-paid cast member, has reportedly walked away from the franchise completely, as sources allege that Leakes could not fit the duties of filming a reality show with her hectic work schedule.

According to TMZ, the show has been filming for the last couple of weeks, and while everyone is believed to have returned — excluding Kim Fields — Nene has been notably absent, giving the likes of Porsha Williams and Phaedra Parks the impression that their pal won’t be coming back.

“TMZ has learned they’ve been shooting for weeks now, and NeNe is nowhere in sight,” the outlet reveals. “It seemed like she was possibly coming back to the main cast after being named a guest last season.”

Last year, it was stressed that producers were left worried when Leakes had bailed on them, especially since they had approached her to allegedly sign a deal worth a reported $2.5 million. Not only did Nene decline, when the offer was made to her again, she kindly refused, saying that the businesses she has launched over the course of two years are refraining her from returning to reality TV.

The 48-year-old has launched a rather successful clothing line with HSN, Bossip adds, recently went on her one-woman tour, is currently gearing up for the premiere of her ABC game show, To Tell The Truth, and might potentially receive a permanent spot on E!’s Fashion Police.

Nene Leakes has also claimed that she has so much more coming up in the near future; going back to the Real Housewives of Atlanta would almost be going back a step from the businesswoman she is trying to become.

The mother of one has said in the past that she hasn’t enjoyed being on the show in recent seasons simply because there was too much negativity being dished around from other cast members.

When Claudia Jordan joined the show for its seventh series, Nene was very vocal when saying that she no longer wanted to be working with a group of women who were constantly slamming one another for the sake of airtime. The twosome would go on to have several blowups, giving Nene all the more reason to know that the decision to leave RHOA would not hurt her in the slightest.

“Our ‘RHOA’ sources tell us producers have added at least one new cast member, and NeNe — the only remaining OG ATL housewife — doesn’t look to be part of plans going forward,” TMZ adds, making it almost certain that, apart from Kim, everyone else has returned, including Cynthia Bailey.

The source concludes by saying that producers are hopeful that Nene Leakes will make some guest appearances because they know that she has a way of attracting viewers. It was said that ever since the socialite-turned-businesswoman left the show, the ratings have plummeted, to the point where producers have done all they can to convince Nene to come back — even if it’s just for a couple of episodes.

For right now, however, it doesn’t seem as if Nene is interested.

[Photo by Donald Bowers/Getty Images for Samsung]

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