The Meanest RHOBH Cast Member, According To Denise Richards
Denise Richards was a household name before joining "The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills." Her Hollywood resume includes being a Bond girl, hit movies like "Wild Things," and of course being known as the ex-wife of polarizing fellow actor Charlie Sheen, with whom she shares two children. However, Richards shocked the world when she joined the cast of "RHOBH" in Season 9 as its most high-profile, famous member yet.
It wasn't until Richards' second season on the show that life became hectic, her friendships were tested, and her marriage was the subject of some serious debate and controversy. While it was the alleged affair between Brandi Glanville and Richards, and their ensuing feud, that triggered the beginning of the end, it was her two-decade-long friendship with Lisa Rinna imploding that truly put the nail in the coffin of Richards' "RHOBH" tenure.
Glanville returning to the show to expose an alleged sexual relationship between herself and the actor certainly didn't help matters, but Richards believed that her close friend, Rinna, would have her back. Sadly, she didn't. Not only did Rinna not defend Denise, but she actively participated in what Richards believed to be a gang-up on her. The "Drop Dead Gorgeous" star recounted the explosive drama on Bethenny Frankel's "Just B" podcast, and she didn't hold back, even asserting that Rinna was the meanest cast member throughout her time on the show.
Richards didn't want to do another season with Rinna
The demise of the decades-long friendship between Lisa Rinna and Denise Richards played out during Season 10 of "RHOBH." Nothing or nobody was going to save it, because they both had different definitions of friendship and what was expected of each other. Richards wanted Rinna to have her back like a real friend would, whereas Rinna appeared, from a viewer's perspective, to be more focused on what was good for the show and doing her job of always speaking the truth.
Things reached a climax between the pair in the finale when they met to discuss an alleged cease-and-desist letter issued by the actor concerning footage of the group discussing the alleged affair with Brandi Glanville. The scene of Richards asking "Who told you that?" and Rinna replying, "Oof you're so angry," will go down as one of the most chilling moments in "Housewives" history. At the reunion, things only got worse between the embattled friends, as Rinna accused Richards of lying.
The Hallmark star then officially exited "RHOBH" and she placed most of the blame on their fallout, telling Bethenny Frankel, "My experience with Lisa Rinna was so bad that I thought, 'OK, what would happen next season?'" Considering her former friend left the show soon after, Richards further bemoaned Rinna's approach: "To see how she could sacrifice a friendship of 20 years for a show that isn't gonna last forever — obviously, she isn't on it anymore — like, at what cost?"
The actor made a surprise return to RHOBH in Season 13
With Lisa Rinna safely off the show, Denise Richards was open to making sporadic appearances during Season 13 of "RHOBH." First, she showed up to Garcelle Beauvais' movie screening. Following that, Richards popped up at the season's dinner party from hell, which saw everyone going at each other, especially Kyle Richards and Sutton Stracke, likely bringing back bad memories for the "Wild Things" star.
Likewise, in the "RHOBH" Season 13 trailer, Richards and former co-star Erika Jayne were seen making several jabs at one another, so despite Rinna no longer being in the picture, the actor clearly still has issues with some of the women. However, she looked back on her surprise return fondly, telling People, "It's been fun [...] I'm a big fan of the show, so it was fun to go back and film a lot of stuff with them."
Richards also confirmed that she didn't intend to go back, showing up purely to support Beauvais, and production was so thrilled they invited her to attend several other cast events too. Discussing her initial departure on "The Real," Richards reasoned, "I went back and forth with it and at the end of the day, I decided it was time for me to move on and focus on other projects that I have. I'm glad that I did it though."