Vicki Gunvalson is finally opening up about one of the most shocking moments in Real Housewives history — the day she found out she was fired from The Real Housewives of Orange County.
The OG of the OC, who helped launch the franchise back in season one, revealed on a December 2025 episode of her podcast, My Friend, My Soulmate, My Podcast, that her RHOC contract was not renewed after season 14 wrapped in 2019. And according to Vicki, the way she found out made the blow sting even more.
Gunvalson admitted she was completely blindsided when Bravo producers called to tell her she wouldn’t be returning for season 15. At the time, she was attending an insurance conference in Las Vegas with her then-fiancé Steve Lodge — not exactly the setting she expected for a life-changing phone call.
“It was horrible,” Vicki said, making it clear the moment still hits hard years later.
She recalled standing on a balcony in Vegas, overwhelmed and in disbelief, when Steve noticed something was wrong.
“I’ll never forget I was in Las Vegas on the balcony and Steve was in the room and he’s like, ‘What’s going on? Why are you crying?’ I’m like, ‘I think I just got fired, but I think they have the wrong number,’” Vicki shared.
As if that wasn’t enough, Tamra Judge revealed she was also unexpectedly let go ahead of season 15 — despite believing she was heading into a meeting to discuss her future on the show.
“I was gonna meet the producers and tell them what I’m gonna do, all these things and then I get a phone call, ‘Sorry. We decided to go in another direction,’” Tamra said. Her response? Much less restrained. “And you know what I said? ‘Go f–k yourself.’”
Fast forward to now, and the tables have completely turned.
Vicki Gunvalson is officially back as a full-time cast member on The Real Housewives of Orange County — and by all accounts, she couldn’t be happier. After years away from the franchise she helped build, the OG is reclaiming her orange, proving that sometimes Bravo really does come full circle.
24 comments