Cherie and Jessey Step Away From 'Bling Empire' to Build Their Own Dynasty

When Bling Empire hit Netflix, it took the streaming world by storm, quickly gaining a loyal fanbase that couldn’t get enough of the fabulous lives of Los Angeles’s Asian elite. Since Season 1 was such a smashing success, Netflix quickly announced that the show would be back for Season 2, and it seems that filming is already underway.

However, on July 14, 2021, Cherie Chan announced that she and fiancé Jessey Lee would not be returning for the upcoming season. So, why did Cherie Chan and Jessey Lee decide to leave the extremely popular Bling Empire?

Cherie Chan and Jessey Lee announced that they will no longer be a part of the group of friends and frenemies on the Netflix reality show. Since neither Cherie nor Jessey need the money from being on Bling Empire, it’s not a massive shock that the couple isn’t returning, but viewers are sad to see them leave nonetheless.

Entertainment Weekly has confirmed that although the couple filmed a few scenes for the new season, it’s unclear whether they will actually "appear in the finished version." Viewers will remember that the couple got engaged after Cherie surprised Jessey with a proposal at their son's 100-day birth celebration, and fans have eagerly awaiting seeing more of the wedding preparations play out in Season 2.

But sadly, we won't see that. In February 2021, a month before Netflix announced the show had been greenlit for Season 2, Cherie told The Sun that she didn’t know whether the family would return for another season.

She said that she never anticipated the show’s massive success and “can’t believe [she has] fans now.” But despite the fame she acquired from the show, Cherie also said that she was “worried about the kids.” She went on to say, “It’s great [being a mom], but it comes with a lot of mom wanting to protect her child. I had no idea [the show] was going to be this big!”

She also said that she and Jessey were “really focused on [their businesses,] Religion Tequila and Bresatech." "We’re very focused on building a legacy for our children," the denim heiress said. "We don’t want to rely on our families.”

Along with announcing their departure, the couple told TMZ that they were grateful to be a part of the first season of the Netflix show and that they wished the rest of their Bling Empire castmates all the best for Season 2.

In her interview with The Sun, Cherie also shared that she and Jessey hadn’t yet tied the knot because COVID-19 had put a stop to all their wedding planning. “We don’t want to have a COVID wedding. We can’t set a date! All my friends who had a wedding planned in 2020 had all canceled,” she explained.

However, Cherie didn’t seem stressed, revealing that the couple had been looking at venues and talking about the wedding before the proposal even took place. “We’re going in opposite directions! Usually, people propose first, but we talked about it before the proposal,” she said.