Why Real Housewives Of New York Alum Heather Thomson Decided To Cut Her Season 13 Return Short

screenshot heather thomson and ramona singer real housewives of new york
(Image credit: Bravo)

Heather Thomson had her run for three seasons as a series regular on Real Housewives of New York back in the old days, which included Carole Radziwill and Aviva Drescher. She officially left the show in 2015 but surprised many Bravo fans by having a stronger cameo presence in Season 13 this year. But apparently, she cut her appearance rather short – and the alum shares exactly why that was.

In the last episode of Real Housewives of New York, Heather Thomson is seen getting reacquainted with old pal Ramona Singer again, who in turn invites Thomson on the girls’ weekend trip to her house in the Hamptons. Things get heated, however, as Leah McSweeney takes issue with Thomson’s presence and past commentary about the group. I guess it was too much for the Real Housewives alum, who told ET Online:

I get 24 hours in the day, just like you do and just like everybody else does. When it came to deciding how I wanted to spend that 24 hours after that weekend, it was pretty easy for me to decide it wasn't with the girls.

The former Real Housewives of New York star was supposed to film as a friend of the show for the entirety of Season 13 before she decided to cut it short. Heather Thomson specifically cited Leah McSweeney as the principal reason why she just couldn’t continue. At the Breakfast at Tiffany’s-themed dinner party, McSweeney had brought up Thomson’s previous comments from her podcast, all of which seemed to imply that Thomson was just using the group and talking behind their backs. In the teaser for next week’s episode, McSweeney is even seen calling Thomson “a Karen” in an explosive argument.

It appears Heather Thomson was hoping for a different experience in Real Housewives of New York’s Season 13 than what she knew from the old days of the show. She continued:

I couldn't go back full time, I talked to Bravo execs about that, so a 'friend of' the show sounded really great. The trips, the cast trips, were a time when there was just the women. There weren't a lot of extras. When I was on, there were husbands and boyfriends and all kinds of people. It's really more insular now, with all the women being single. I thought that I could lean into that [for] this season for the show. But, ultimately, that's not how it worked out for me, but that's OK.

The thirteenth season of Real Housewives of New York is unquestionably going down a much more different route than ever seen before. Newcomer Eboni K. Williams became the show’s first African American cast member this year, and she isn’t afraid to address certain racial issues in the room. However, Williams recently announced that she was taking a break from social media to protect her mental health. She explained that the previous and next episode of the show will likely incite a dialogue that she would rather avoid for now.

It isn’t clear as of yet if Heather Thomson has a part to play in the drama Eboni K. Williams alludes to in the next episode of Real Housewives of New York. We’ll just have to wait and see when it airs on June 8 at 9 p.m. ET. Williams did tease, though, that the drama somehow, potentially, maybe, can solidify bonds of sisterhood.

Lauren Vanderveen
Movies and TV News Writer

Freelance writer. Favs: film history, reality TV, astronomy, French fries.