Here's the Real Reason Jacqueline Laurita Left 'RHONJ'
Published March 3 2021, 9:19 p.m. ET
One of the original RHONJ cast members, Jacqueline Laurita, left the Real Housewives of New Jersey behind in 2017 and has since made several life changes. At the time, many people theorized about why Jacqueline left, but she has since come forward with the truth, which is not too far off from why people thought she left in the first place.
Jacqueline was loved by the RHONJ fanbase for calling out other housewives when they were being fake or stirring up drama just for the sake of stirring up drama. After five seasons with the RHONJ show, Jacqueline didn’t stir up enough of that fake drama to stay on as a full-time housewife and was demoted to be a friend of the housewives. She came back fully for Season 7, but that’s what truly made her decide to leave for good. So, why did Jacqueline officially leave RHONJ?
Jacqueline left ‘RHONJ’ in 2017 due to personality clashes.
Many may remember the great stripper debacle of 2017 when Jacqueline called out Teresa Giudice for trying to spread rumors about one of the housewives, saying that she was a stripper. Teresa denied it, but knowing both Jacqueline and Teresa, it’s clear Jacqueline was just honestly calling out Teresa. Teresa actually came onto RHONJ as Jacqueline’s friend, but throughout the first five seasons, we saw their friendship deteriorate.
She shared in The LookOver Ladies podcast, “When I first met [Teresa], she was very lighthearted, ditsy, but always just so funny because she was so stupid. I think that she would just say dumb things, and I would laugh all the time. I always had laughs with her … I didn't see that ugly side to her until Melissa [Gorga] came into the picture, and then I saw all the things she did to try to sabotage Melissa, so that was kind of like, 'Wow, who's this girl?'”
The two then had multiple clashes as Teresa tried to drag Jacqueline and her sister-in-law, Caroline Manzo, into her legal drama that resulted in jail time for both Teresa and her husband. At this point, Page Six reported that Jacqueline had a start date set for Season 8, but then the producers “expressed concern that [she] wasn’t getting along with a few of the girls.”
In an exclusive with ET, Jacqueline revealed, “I think the feeling [from the network] is that I no longer have an authentic connection with two of the season’s cast members.” Many believe she is referring to Teresa and Melissa Gorga, who Jacqueline called out for her multiple plastic surgeries.
Jacqueline will likely not be returning to ‘RHONJ’ or any ‘Real Housewives’ show.
The producers offered a part-time role for Jacqueline to then prove herself, but at that point, she felt she had done her time on RHONJ already. However, in a later 2018 tweet, Jacqueline shared that they had asked her to come back. She divulged, “I was asked by an executive producer what it would take for me to come back to #RHONJ … I said full time and a whole new cast. Lol! (Dolores [Catania] can stay.) I don’t like the direction it’s going in anymore.”
Plus, Us Weekly sources confirmed that even though it was rumored that producers wanted Jacqueline and Caroline back on RHONJ, neither would be coming back. Maybe the producers had too much drama from the other women and needed to get some more realness?
Jacqueline did leave ‘RHONJ,’ but that’s not the only thing she left behind.
Jacqueline has committed to continue spreading autism awareness, since her son, Nicholas, was diagnosed with autism. She even found a friend in actress Jenny McCarthy, who also has an autistic son. Jacqueline and her husband, Chris Laurita, ultimately decided to sell their Bergen County home and move to Nevada with Nicholas.
Many suspect money problems are behind the move, as there have been foreclosure reports and the couple have even sold some of their household items on Facebook. Regardless, Jacqueline seems to be better off without RHONJ.