Mary Bonnet says the backlash over her Selling Sunset feud with Chelsea Lazkani turned her life upside down, costing her clients and brand deals.
“It had been very, very bad,” Mary, 45, told Us Weekly. She said she battled production over how the conflict would appear and felt the final edit made some of her reactions seem excessive.
The fallout lasted about three months, she said, forcing her to turn off comments as online criticism spread into her real estate career. Some clients asked her to step away from listings after they were harassed, according to Mary.
The dispute unfolded during season 9, when Mary questioned whether Chelsea’s flowers after the break-in were sincere or staged for the cameras. Chelsea, 33, has previously discussed feeling more intensely scrutinized as the only Black woman in the cast.
“When I do it, it’s just a little bit louder,” Chelsea told PS in 2024. She said some cast members lacked exposure to people from diverse backgrounds and did not always recognize microaggressions.
Mary said that castmates considered releasing a joint statement in her defense, but the plan was abandoned. Since leaving before season 10, she has focused more of her public work on animal rescue.
“I’d rather just disappear into the night” than chase attention, Mary said.