Cynthia Bailey has returned to The Real Housewives of Atlanta’s season 16 as a “friend of” the show, and the model says she’s happy with the demotion.
Cynthia joined the show in its third season, which premiered in 2010, and was introduced as a friend of NeNe Leakes. Her storyline often revolved around her relationship with Peter Thomas, his failed business ventures, and Cynthia’s commitment issues, but she eventually married him on the show.
The friend role allows me that time and flexibility to really work around my schedule,” she explained to PARADE. “I pop in, you know, for me, which is really fun and so much fun to go get everyone else’s tea and not have to, you know, spill your own tea.”
She continued, “I love this about Bravo that they’ll let us go from housewife to friend, friend to housewife,” she added. “It keeps you still connected to the show in whatever way, and if you don’t have a storyline or if you have a storyline you’re just not interested in sharing, it’s still a great way to still be on the show.”
“I mean, if it’s good enough for Kathy Hilton, it’s definitely good enough for me!”
Cynthia, who is friends with Kenya Moore, has also been very critical about Kenya’s decision to share explicit photos of cast member Brittany Eady, which has divided longtime viewers of the show.