Kenya Moore Opens Up About RHOA Future Amid Extended Hiatus

While appearing on Tuesday's episode of Tamron Hall, the reality star -- who has been a main cast member on RHOA since 2012 -- shared her thoughts on the recent news that Kandi Burruss won't be returning to the Bravo series amid the show's extended hiatus.

"They were thinking about, after last season, recasting the show, figuring it out, and it's taken forever," Moore, 53, said. "And so, we started making moves. She started doing other project. I started doing this project. I'm working on Kenya Moore Hair Care ... I opened a hair salon in Atlanta [and] I started focusing on other things."

As for Burruss, Moore said she believes "time was not on their side," so her longtime costar, "decided to move in another direction."

And the 53-year-old Bravo star said she's not too worried. "We know Kandi will be fine," she told Hall. "She is that girl, so she'll be fine."

As for her own future on RHOA, Moore -- who joined the series in Season 5 -- said she's unsure what will happen.

"They haven't made any final decisions. I think that they'll be announcing that shortly," she shared, before adding, "For me, I'm just focusing on the new for Kenya Moore -- the new for me, just my bucket list, my businesses, and just focusing on leaving that legend for my daughter, showing her who she can possibly be, just the legacy."

After the show's 15th season, Bravo announced that it would retool the Atlanta Housewives franchise, similarly to what the network did with The Real Housewives of New York City before its 14th season.

While it's currently unclear if the cast will only be newcomers, Moore was also asked if she believes there's a chance Nene Leakes will possibly be invited back. The Housewives OG stepped away from the franchise after Season 12 due to a contract dispute. She later sued the franchise for what she called a "toxic" work environment, but has since dropped that.

Moore appeared to shut down any speculation of Leakes making a return.

"I don't know, I can't answer that," she told Hall. "That question has been asked a lot of times but according to our boss, that door is closed. But you know, you never know."

Moore's interview with Hall comes only a few days after Burruss shocked fans when she revealed she's not returning to RHOA during an interview with Variety on the red carpet at the 2024 Grammy Awards on Sunday night.

"I'm not really keeping up right now," the RHOA OG said when asked about the show. "I'm not keeping up. I already said it, so I'll tell you. I decided I'm not coming back this year."

Citing the show's extended hiatus prior to its 16th season, Burruss said extra time to think contributed to her decision to take a step back.

She continued, "It's been 14 seasons, and they allowed us to sit around for a little too long, but during that time I had started working on a lot of other things, and I got some nice big projects coming soon, so I'm super excited about those things."

The musician and actress also said that during the break, she began questioning her role on the long-running series before ultimately deciding not to come back

"But it's not just that," Burruss added. "It's just like, after you really have time to think, and a friend of mine was like, 'Why do you keep doing it?' And I was like, 'Well, I think because I've just been doing it for so long, it feels weird to think not to do it?' So I was just like, 'You know what? I'm going to take a break, I'm going to take a moment… I'm not coming back this year.'"

Per Variety, Bravo is reportedly close to announcing the show's new cast, and while it won't be a full reboot, only a few key cast members will return.