Tommy Garcia/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty; Courtesy Everett Collection Producing theReal Housewivesmay actually involve a lot of artifice, but there's one thing that can't be faked: the staggering amount of money spent on parties and glam. Real Housewives of Beverly HillsstarLisa Rinnashocked her fellowMelrose PlacealumsDaphne Zuniga,Laura Leighton, andCourtney Thorne-Smithon a recent episode of theirStill the Placepodcast when she revealed that it's the cast who foots the bill for those expenses, not production. "You said that each cast member has to pay for her own parties?" Thorne-Smith asked incredulously. Rinna confirmed: "And your own hair and makeup and wardrobe! Imagine that. That's the part that's the hardest, because we're used to being dressed," she said, gesturing to the prolific TV credentials of the assembled actresses. "They want your real life," Rinna said, repeating the explanation she said she was given during her nine-season stint onRHOBH. "Their take on it is: You should look how you look, because this is your life. So they want that. But I didn't love that part of it, because I spent all my money on hair and makeup and wardrobe. You know what I mean? You just spend it all." Leighton shared in Thorne-Smith's shock, reasoning thatBravo, the network behind the sprawlingHousewivesfranchise, must not want true pictures of their stars' lives, because "at home, you don't do your hair and makeup every single day, so you're in their world. So they should pay for how they want you to look in their world." Rinna agreed, saying of the explanation she was given, "I still don't buy it. I think that wardrobe — they're just cheap, and hair and makeup should be covered. I really do. That was the hardest thing for me." Courtesy Everett Collection Rinna joinedThe Real Housewives of Beverly Hillsin a guest role in season 4, and was promoted to main cast the following year, where she remained until sheresignedafter season 12. During that time, she threw and attended countless parties, had to pack numerous costume changes for international trips in far-flung locales like Dubai, China, and Italy, and cycled through a number of hair and makeup transformations — all on her own dime. Bravo exec andHousewiveswranglerAndy Cohenhas detailed thebudgetary breakdownin the past, explaining that while it's the network that pays for most vacations and group dinners, he did admit, "The women take the planning of the vacation really seriously, and so it's case by case, but we have paid for them." Leighton, Thorne-Smith, and Zuniga may have been surprised, but it's well known amongHousewivesfans that cast are expected to pick up the tab on their parties and glam — because many of those cast members have been open about that expectation. Sign up forEntertainment Weekly's free daily newsletterto get breaking TV news, exclusive first looks, recaps, reviews, interviews with your favorite stars, and more. "People always ask about the planes and the parties and stuff, and they do think everything is paid by production — even other cast members from other shows ask about that,"RHOBHO.G.Kyle Richardssaid at BravoConin 2022. "We are actually paying for those things ourselves." Real Housewives of Dallasstar Stephanie Hollmanconcurredin a 2024 TikTok, explaining, "Whenever you throw events — so usually you have to throw one big thing a year — you pay for that and those events can be very, very pricey because they're expected to be nice and look good on film and that will cost you." You can listen to Rinna's full conversation with Leighton, Thorne-Smith, and Zuniga onStill the Placeabove. Read the original article onEntertainment Weekly
