Why did Heather Dubrow leave RHOC in season 11?

The Real Housewives of Orange County is an iconic Bravo show as it was the first Real Housewives show of the franchise! RHOC first launched in 2006, and following its success, the Real Housewives of New Jersey, Atlanta, Potomac and many more lcoations were launched.

Vicki Gunvalson, Tamra Judge, Meghan King Edmonds and Heather Dubrow were all former cast members – until now. Heather is back for season 16 of the show in 2021 and some of her castmates didn’t believe that the news was true.

Why did Heather Dubrow leave RHOC in season 11?

Back in January 2017, Heather took to Instagram to share with her followers that she was saying goodbye to the show after five seasons. Heather detailed her reasons for leaving RHOC in a statment to Bravo.

She said that she wanted to spend more time with her family and that she also wanted to “go in another direction“.

Heather also said: “Should I change my mind, I thank Andy Cohen, Evolution and Bravo for telling me that the door is always open.”

Read More: Inside Heather Dubrow’s acting career alongside RHOC

Heather’s castmates’ response to her departure

While Heather stated her reasons for choosing to leave the show, her castmates and fellow housewives had a few things to say about why they thought she left.

As per Page Six, Kelly Dodd said that Heather left in 2017 “because she had too much ‘ego’ after being demoted“.

Showbiz Cheatsheet reported in 2020 that Tamra Judge also thought that Heather left for personal reasons. According to Tamra, the show wasn’t the same following Heather’s departure.

She said on the Behind the Velvet Rope podcast: “I think it was a personal thing, I really do. I think it was a personal conflict with an executive at Bravo.”

What did Heather do after RHOC?

While Heather has taken a break from RHOC for the past four years, it appears, from her Instagram page, that she’s been spending lots of quality time with her family.

Heather is married to plastic surgeon Terry Dubrow and together they have four children.

Heather has a podcast ‘Heather Dubrow’s World‘ and she also had an extensive acting career. The RHOC star has likely been doing a lot of home renovation in her time away. But, now in 2021, she’s back as an official cast member.