Nothing good can last forever—and sometimes, it’s the most scandalous and compelling reality stars who get fired, quit, or simply fade away once the cameras stop rolling. There's The Bachelor’s biggest villains, Love Is Blind’s breakout stars, and the messiest Real Housewives to consider. So, what happened to these reality stars when the cameras stopped rolling? Well…a lot.
1. Love Is Blind Left Us With Unanswered Questions
When it came time for the stars of Love Is Blind season 2 to hit the altar, fans were left with a lot of shocking surprises (and anger at Shake, but we’ll get to that later). One of the biggest surprises came when Natalie Lee refused to marry Shayne Jansen, citing a big fight they’d had the night before. Shayne’s devastated reaction made it seem like Natalie had blindsided him—but Natalie later revealed the truth about that moment.
She actually let Shayne know in advance that while she’d walk up the aisle, she wouldn’t say “I do” when she got to the altar. So, why did he act so surprised?
2. They Dated In Secret For Months
Natalie thinks it’s because he was still holding out hope that she might change her mind. And while she may not have agreed to marriage, that doesn’t mean that she and Shayne parted ways after their ill-fated trip to the altar. About a week later, they began seeing each other again, and Natalie still wore her engagement ring. After a few months, they broke things off and took a cooling period before the reunion.
Ultimately, they stayed friends and both say they cherish the time they spent together. The path to love isn’t always a straight one—especially when paperwork is involved…
3. This Fan Favorite Couple Had A Rocky Relationship
Of all the couples on 90 Day Fiancé, Olga and Steven were among the most sympathetic characters. They were incredibly young and Olga’s experience giving birth in a Russian hospital was downright scary. On top of that, their venomous fights made it feel like they were doomed to split up—and that’s exactly what they did in October of 2020 after just over a year of marriage.
Still, the cute pair still had another surprise up their sleeves.
4. They Just Announced Huge News
In October of 2021, a year after their split, Olga and Stephen confirmed that they were back together—but they came up with even bigger news in March of 2022. The against-all-odds couple announced that they just found out that Olga was pregnant again. After a big move to Brooklyn, New York, the pair and their now three-year-old son Alex will welcome a baby in late 2022.
Starting a family young is never easy—but as the cast of Teen Mom has proved, some handle it better than others…
5. She Took A Huge Villain Turn
When it came to breakout 16 And Pregnant/Teen Mom stars, no one made a splash quite like Farrah Abraham. With her abusive mother and the tragic loss of her daughter’s father, she started out as one of the most sympathetic figures on MTV—only to complete turn that all around within a period of years.
There were the adult films and her villainous behavior on Teen Mom OG. But throughout it all, it seemed like Abraham had the MTV producers wrapped around her finger…that is, until they hit their breaking point.
6. Her Side Hustle Came Back To Haunt Her
Viacom, MTV’s parent company, fired Farrah from Teen Mom OG in 2017. While many believed it was because of her abusive and demanding behavior with producers, a stunning lawsuit from Farrah later revealed the truth. She accused producers of having fired her for “not conforming to gender stereotypes,” and that they’d discriminated against her due to her work in the adult industry.
Ultimately, both parties settled for a cool $5 million—and Farrah went on to persecute producers again on Ex on the Beach season 2. While MTV was quick to bury the hatchet, the same can’t be said for some Bravo stars…
7. The Series Was Never The Same
For years, Stassi Schroeder and Kristen Doute were the (terrifying) backbone of Vanderpump Rules, striking fear into the hearts of co-stars and SUR customers alike. But in 2020, Bravo made the tough decision to fire them both at the same time after castmate Faith Stowers accused them of calling the authorities on her, saying that she was a wanted woman.
At the same time, Bravo booted two of the show’s newer cast members after some of their racially insensitive tweets surfaced. So, what became of Stassi and Kristen?
8. The Backlash Was Massive
Losing their spots on VPR was just one of the consequences that the girls faced for their actions toward Stowers. Stassi’s agency and PR firm dropped her as a client, and Kristen lost a book deal. Since all that drama, Kristen has kept a low profile, but has revealed to fans that she’s interested in having a baby with her partner Alex Menache.
Her story is actually pretty low-key compared to Stassi’s…
Getty Images
9. One Of Them Made The Best Of It
Since her unceremonious exit from VPR, Stassi Schroeder not only got married to longtime partner Beau Clark, she also had her first child with him, a daughter they named Hartford, in January of 2021. And unlike Kristen, Stassi has some career moves in the works—name, a book about “surviving rock bottom,” due in April of 2022.
It will (obviously) address the fallout from her behavior toward Stowers and her firing from Vanderpump Rules. But it might take a lot more than a book for other stars who put their foot in their mouth…
10. She Had A Massive Following
Hannah Brown’s sweet charm and pageant smile took her from contestant on The Bachelor to star of The Bachelorette season 15. Bachelor Nation contestants often amass huge followings on social media after their seasons end, and Hannah was no different—but that’s exactly where the trouble began.
11. It Was A Slip Of The Lip
During the early months of the pandemic when tons of celebrities were taking to Instagram live, Hannah came under fire after viewers caught her using the N-word on camera while singing along to rapper DaBaby’s song “Rockstar.” Among those calling her out was former Bachelorette Rachel Lindsay. Strangely enough, Hannah initially tried to deny it—super weird move—before eventually apologizing.
And taking a turn from stars apologizing, we have those who are most definitely owed an apology.
12. They Were Super Shady About Firing Her
When Gabrielle Union joined America’s Got Talent as a judge in season 14, it was a great moment for the show. After all, she’s super entertaining—but when she only lasted a season and producers declined to ask her back, the alarm bells went off our heads. Was she a backstage diva? Did ratings take a dive during her tenure?
Well, the real reason was a lot more sinister.
13. Life Backstage Was Horrible
Union later revealed that her discomfort behind the scenes began during her very first moments on the show. Variety later published an expose about the terrible environment at the show, detailing allegations of racially-charged incidents between contestants, producers, and guest judges like Jay Leno.
So how did Union end up on the wrong side of it all?
14. She Made Sure Everyone Knew
According to reports, Union spoke up about the horrible treatment she and other cast and crew members were experiencing. In the wake of her complaints, the producers of the show declined to renew her contract. When Union went public with what had happened, NBC set up an investigation into her claims but didn’t really report any findings.
Union eventually filed a discrimination claim, before eventually settling with NBC for an undisclosed sum. That wasn’t the only surprise exit on a major network show…
15. She Called Him Out
With 42 seasons and counting (!!!), Survivor has had its fair share of memorable characters. Sadly, some were memorable for less than savory reasons. In 2019, Dan Spilo became the first player ever that producers ejected. Weeks earlier, fellow contestant Kellee Kim had said that he’d touched her inappropriately and that it had made her uncomfortable.
But that was just one part of his early exit.
Survivor (American TV series), CBS
16. He Went Too Far
After Kellee commented that it looked like Dan had a pattern of inappropriate behavior with women, producers issued a warning to him. Later, after he touched the thigh of a female producer off camera, they asked him to leave. In December of 2019, Dan released a statement apologizing for his behavior. Since then, he’s produced a number of film and TV shows.
From one surprise firing to another—both for seriously messed-up stuff…
Survivor (American TV series), CBS
17. She Definitely Deserved It
Jenelle Evans was a 16 And Pregnant and Teen Mom long-hauler, appearing on the series for over nine years—but then, in May of 2019, MTV cut ties with her. The reason why was sickening. Jenelle’s relationship with her partner David Eason was a terrible one, with violent incidents aplenty. But that year, Eason shot and killed Jenelle’s dog, Nugget.
It was the final straw for MTV, who let go of Jenelle and never looked back. They definitely made the right choice—but sometimes, things aren’t so black and white.
18. They Turned On Each Other
When it comes to the Real Housewives franchise, Vicki Gunvalson is the OG of the OG. As one of the original cast members of the first series, The Real Housewives of Orange County, Vicki was one of Bravo’s darlings and major money-makers. But all good things must come to an end—even if they end spectacularly badly. Vicki was on RHOC for 14 seasons before ending up in a “friend of” role for season 15.
Apparently, she wasn’t happy about it.
19. They Quashed Her Comeback
In January of 2020, Vicki announced her exit from RHOC—with sources whispering that she was angry and unwilling to appear again in the lesser “friend” role on the show. Then, it appeared to backfire on her. Bravo was working on creating their Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip series, and Vicki was in talks with them to appear. But when she said she was done with RHOC, the network ghosted her.
For a minute, it looked like we’d never see Vicki on Bravo screens again—but luckily, these things have a way of working themselves out.
20. They’re Bringing Back All The Old Faves
Vicki will appear on season 2 of Ultimate Girls Trip—but she’s not the only face from Housewives past that fans never expected to see again. Real Housewives of Atlanta’s NeNe Leakes had exited that show after what she called “emotional negotiations” with Bravo, but has agreed to appear for season 3 of Ultimate Girls Trip. What other fan favorites can we expect?
Well, there’s Brandi Glanville, Dorinda Medley, Sonja Morgan, Lisa Rinna, and Taylor Armstrong. What a reunion! Not every cast gets along so well when the cameras stop…
21. They Left In A Cloud Of Mystery
Vanderpump Rules’ Jax Taylor and his wife Brittany Cartwright survived the firings of Stassi Schroeder and Kristen Doute—but not for long. Just months after the cast shake-up, Bravo fired Jax for “racist and transphobic comments” he’d made in the past, and Brittany went with him. His last appearance on the show featured him telling Lisa Vanderpump that it was “his” show, before she corrected him—and ultimately, the joke was on him.
But just because he wasn’t onscreen anymore didn’t mean he wasn’t creating any drama.
22. He Turned On An Old Friend
While the remaining cast members don’t really talk about Stassi or Kristen, they did refer to Jax in the most recent season—and what they shared was brutal. Particularly, there was some detail about the ultimate fate of Jax Taylor and Tom Sandoval’s friendship. While they’d once been close, things began to fall apart during Jax’s wedding.
Afterward, Jax publicly stated that he wished that Tom hadn’t been at the wedding. And then…they caught Jax on camera.
23. They Caught Him In The Act
Among Jax’s more melodramatic moments was the time that Sandoval woke up one morning and checked his doorbell cam footage only to find that Jax had sneakily returned the samurai sword that Sandoval had once gifted him. He didn’t even bother ringing the doorbell. Since then, Jax hasn’t gotten the spinoff show he may have anticipated—but he has plenty of endorsement deals and Cameo requests to keep him occupied.
He isn’t the only former screen presence hawking Cameos, either…
24. 19 Years Of Work Was Gone In An Instant
One of the more expensive reality star Cameos comes courtesy of former Bachelor host Chris Harrison (his videos go for $350+). Producers ousted the longtime host in early 2021 after a disastrous interview where he defended a contestant who attended an Antebellum-themed party. That was the end of his record 19-year run with the show.
While it wasn’t a great year for Harrison career-wise, there was one bright spot. In October of 2021, he got engaged to his partner of 3+ years, Lauren Zima. Engagements have been in the air lately…
25. She Rebounded Fast
I think anyone who watched Love Is Blind season 2 was aware that Shaina Hurley and Kyle Abrams were never going to make it—but no one expected her to rebound as fast as she did. While we may have only known Shaina & co. for a few months, Love Is Blind was filmed so long ago that Shaina managed to pack in a nearly-year-long relationship since she and Kyle parted ways.
And recently, she took it to the next level.
26. She’s Finally Going To Make It To The Altar
In March of 2022, Shaina revealed that her boyfriend of nearly a year, Christos Lardakis, had proposed to her. She explained that he’d been with her as Love Is Blind aired and her face—and brief engagement to Kyle—were splashed across tabloid covers. They got engaged while visiting Greece. Well, there goes all hope for the Shayne/Shaina shippers…all one or two of them.
But forget season 2…let’s go back to the beginning and season 1’s most memorable cast member.
27. They Portrayed Her Poorly
She was supposed to be the “career woman,” but all it took was a few inebriated incidents and letting her dog drink out of her vino glass for Jessica “the Messica” Batten to emerge. Jessica’s relationship, engagement, and aborted wedding happened months before Love Is Blind ever aired. By the time that it hit our screens, she was prepared for what she called a “bad edit”—but the backlash was way more than she expected.
28. She Got A Surprise Out Of Left Field
Jessica ended up as the “villain” of season 1 of Love Is Blind, so after it aired, she took time to herself out of the public eye to recover. While the show didn’t bring her true love in the form of a quickie engagement to fellow contestant Mark Cuevas, it did bring her true love in the form of…a quickie engagement…with some guy who watched the show.
29. She Finally Found Happiness
A fan named Dr. Ben McGrath slid in Jessica’s Instagram DMs after watching the show—and gambit worked way better than anyone could’ve expected. They got engaged in September of 2021, a year and a half after they started dating. Tying the knot with Dr. McGrath will make Jessica a stepmother to his two kids from a previous relationship.
She got her happily ever after…but not everyone is as lucky.
30. Things Took A Real Dive For Him
Jon & Kate Plus 8 was a reality sensation when it debuted in 2007—but when the titular couple couldn’t make it work, it became, simply, Kate Plus 8. After an extremely messy split and a few failed relationships, Jon ended up working odd jobs, including one as a prep cook at T.G.I. Friday’s, and one installing solar panels.
But his relationship with his kids suffered greatly after the split.
31. The Math Is All Off
These days, Jon Gosselin is estranged from six of his eight children. The two exceptions, Hannah and Colin, live with Jon full-time. After a few failed relationships, it looked like Jon had finally found love with nurse Colleen Conrad—but their romance was ultimate a casualty of the pandemic, and the two split in 2021.
From one classic reality figure to another…
32. The Backlash Was Instant
Dance Moms mainstay Abby Lee Miller was controversial from the very start. When Dance Moms first aired, the Dance Masters of America revoked Miller’s membership, saying that it was "a total misrepresentation of our dance educators and their students and is detrimental to the dance profession.” And it only got worse from there…
33. Never Forget The Backward Wheelchair Escape
Miller’s tenure on Dance Moms made her the subject of 1,000 memes. In March 2017, in the middle of a bankruptcy fraud case, she left the show. After receiving a sentence of 366 days in prison, she went away before her eventual release in March of 2018. Miller wanted to make a comeback with Abby’s Virtual Dance Off, but Lifetime canceled the series in June of 2020 after a series of offensive remarks she’d made resurfaced.
Phew. Quite the rollercoaster. At least another Dance Moms star got a happy ending.
Dance Moms , Lifetime Television
34. It’s Possible For Child Stars To Thrive
Season 4 saw fan favorite Chloe Lukasiak quitting at the end of the season—but fast forward a few years, and the dancer is happier than ever. Now 20 years old, Chloe is thriving and happy with her girlfriend, pro skateboarder Brooklinn Khoury. As one commenter remarked, “it’s good to see someone escape from Abby Lee Miller’s claws.”
Not every child star is as lucky—but some do make it out intact.
35. Don’t Call Her Honey Boo Boo
Alana Thompson—formerly known as the titular character of TLC’s Here Comes Honey Boo Boo—is now 16 years old, if you can believe it, and no longer participating in child beauty pageants. She’s periodically appeared on TV in shows like Dancing With the Stars and The Masked Singer. Sadly, she did have to move in with her sister after her mother’s 2019 arrest—but does seems relatively happy and well-adjusted despite the circumstances.
36. He Lost His Wife And Everything Else
Dog the Bounty Hunter ran for nine seasons, introducing us all to the high-tension world of bounty hunting through Duane “Dog” Chapman and his family, including his wife Beth. Ever since Beth’s tragic passing in 2019, people have wondered what her widower Dog had been up to—and the answer is heartbreaking. Chapman has tried to recapture the success he once had…and it hasn’t exactly gone well.
37. His Comeback Didn’t Happen
In 2021, Chapman was supposed to star in a new series called Dog Unleashed, but the program never made it to air—angering Chapman, who lashed out at the production team. The company behind the show then revealed the real reason why it hadn’t moved forward, claiming they’d uncovered "racist and homophobic comments” that Chapman had made.
Chapman denied the allegations—and then went on to join the hunt for Brian Laundrie in the fall of 2021. He wasn’t there for the dramatic end of that case—and it remains to be seen if he’ll ever make it to our TV screens again.
38. Who Could Forget “The Most Dramatic Moment In Bachelor History”?
Colton Underwood became The Bachelor contestant responsible for the abovementioned superlative when he dramatically jumped over a fence at a resort after his pick, Cassie Randolph, left. Ultimately, Randolph and Underwood found their way back to each other and ended the season in a relationship.
But then, after a year and a half of dating, the pair broke up—and that’s where the trouble began.
39. He Surprised Everyone
Four months after their breakup, Randolph filed a restraining order against Underwood—and the allegations came as a surprise to many fans. Randolph claimed that he’d shown up at her and her parents’ homes, sent creepy texts from an anonymous number, and installed a tracking device on her car. The court granted her request, but the exes later reached a private agreement dissolving the restraining order.
The surprises didn’t end there, though, as Underwood came out as gay in April of 2021. That put a definite end to that saga. However, these type of issues in Bachelor Nation are basically nothing compared to what’s going on with the housewives…
40. She Flew Under The Radar
The Real Housewives franchise has been hit hard over the last two seasons—between the accusations against Erika Jayne and her divorce, and Jen Shah’s sudden arrest, it’s definitely getting messier than the producers ever intended. But after the unceremonious firing of Real Housewives of Salt Lake City’s Jennie Nguyen after offensive past tweets surfaced, another housewife’s exit—and court troubles—didn’t get as much attention.
41. She Had Problems Of Her Own
In late 2021, RHOSLC star Mary Cosby faced charges for “unlawfully providing shelter to a runaway and contributing to the delinquency of a minor.” Immediately, fans thought that perhaps it had something to do with her church. But, in fact, authorities charged her alongside her son, Robert Cosby, Jr. The runaway/minor in question is thought to be Robert’s girlfriend.
Mary lamented having to deal with another family’s domestic issues. As far as we can tell, the courtroom issues are ongoing—but one thing is for sure. Mary Cosby’s time on RHOSLC is done. The only question is: why?
The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, Invent TV
42. She Made A Huge Faux Pas
When rumors began to float around that Mary was skipping the season 2 reunion, it raised a lot of eyebrows. After all, it’s practically forbidden for housewives to ditch reunions, which are often the highest-rated episodes of any given season. As the rumors floated around and were eventually confirmed as truth, another set of stories began to spread.
This time, they said that Mary was done with the series. So, did she quit…or was she fired?
The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, Invent TV
43. She Couldn’t Hide The Truth
Well, it turned into a bit of a roller-coaster ride. At first, Mary denied that she’d parted ways with the Housewives franchise—but insiders claimed that producers had indeed made the decision to fire her after she skipped the reunion. Considering her whole “schtick” on the show was acting like she’s above everything, it’s not surprising…but it looks like it was a fatal mistake.
She’s for sure gone—but hey, at least she’ll always have her congregation, right?
The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City, Invent TV
44. There’s A New Worst Bachelor In Town
Juan Pablo Garcia is widely-known as the worst bachelor in the history of Bachelor Nation—which made what he tweeted at the end of season 26 of The Bachelor all the more funny. After a rocky season full of questionable decisions for bachelor Clayton Echard, Juan Pablo tweeted: “Finally I can SLEEP in peace… THANKS Clayton Lol,” implying that Clayton had surpassed him as the most-hated bachelor.
But do Clayton’s actions since the end of his season really merit this treatment? Well…
The Bachelor (American TV series), ABC
45. Nobody Was A Winner
At least when seasons of The Bachelor usually end, there’s normally two people walking away happy. At the end of this season’s finale, there was four unhappy people parting ways. Rachel was upset, Gabby told Clayton precisely what he’d done wrong, and Susie, rejecting Clayton in the way he’d rejected the other women. But then—a twist.
The Bachelor (American TV series), ABC
46. People Were Seriously Disappointed
At some point between the finale and the After the Final Rose special, Clayton and Susie had got back together—and moved in. Yikes. If he hadn’t been such a jerk, it almost could’ve seemed like redemption. Instead, it just seemed liked a dud move for Susie, who at least at one point, knew that she could do better than Clayton.
Well, at least Love Is Blind’s Deepti knew her worth and stuck to her guns…
The Bachelor (American TV series), ABC
47. Love Wasn’t Actually Blind
At a time when we all needed it most, Netflix came through with a bonkers second season of Love Is Blind. As we mentioned, Natalie and Shayne stirred up their fair share of drama, but there was one cast member who united tens of thousands of people (if not more) in their shared hatred: Abhishek “Shake” Chatterjee. After weeks of rude comments to other people about his fiancée Deepti Vempati, she left him at the altar—apparently beating him to the punch. But as we all know, their story didn’t end there.
48. They All Turned On Him
In the wake of their failed wedding, cast members came together to stand behind Deepti—and at the reunion, they let Shake know what they really thought of him. Before long, Love Is Blind co-hosts Nick and Vanessa Lachey were joining in the pile on. Between that and a huge audience backlash, Shake was definitely in the hot seat.
In early March 2022, Shake released a video on Instagram, making a public apology to Deepti (on top of an earlier private one). It was one that many fans thought was long overdue—and it soon became clear that one apology didn’t mean he was a completely reformed man…
49. He Kept Doubling Down
Of course, Shake’s apology rang oh-so-sincerely after he spent weeks quite literally telling anyone who would listen that he was not going to apologize. And he didn’t stop there. He’s also made disparaging posts about both Nick Lachey and co-star Kyle Abrams, saying in an IG post that “You’re a serial cheater and everyone in Chicago knows it.”
But, of course, it was Deepti herself who made the biggest revelation of all.
50. He Was Acting Like A Huge Creep
During the Love Is Blind reunion, Shake was eager to express that he found Vanessa Lachey attractive—something the host was not exactly impressed by. Deepti said that not only had he made other girls in the cast cry while they were in the pods, but that he was also openly hitting on Lachey before the filming started for the reunion. One word: yuck.
Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38
