The cast of The Real Housewives of New York City has not been in touch with Brynn Whitfield since filming the Season 15 reunion, according to star Jenna Lyons.
In the season finale, which aired Tuesday night (Jan. 21), tensions reached their boiling point between Whitfield and Ubah Hassan, forcing production to end the cast trip to Puerto Rico early. Still angry that Hassan implied she might’ve slept with someone to secure her spot on the show, Whitfield emotionally told the ladies that she was once raped — and that Hassan was aware of that when she made the damaging comment.
When word got back to Hassan, she had an explosive reaction, insisting she never knew Whitfield was sexually assaulted. Eventually, Whitfield admitted to the women that Hassan “might not have clocked it” when she allegedly told her about the harrowing incident before BravoCon 2023, prompting everyone to believe that she had manipulated the truth to win the argument.
“Are any of the ladies currently in contact with Brynn and do you know if Ubah and Brynn have shared a conversation since the reunion?” Andy Cohen asked Lyons on Tuesday night’s episode of Watch What Happens Live.
“I think that’s a no and no,” she replied, while her co-stars Jessel Taank and Racquel Chevremont sat stone-faced in the audience.
Looking back on the “devastating” evening, Lyons recalled the moment she knew Hassan was telling the truth about not knowing about Whitfield’s experience with rape.
“I could see the emotion in her face and I realized in that moment, there’s no way she knew. There’s no way she could’ve known,” Lyons said. “The level of complete distraught — she was just completely taken out. I believed her in that moment.”
While it’s no secret that Whitfield has a tendency to stretch the truth, Lyons felt as though she “went too far” this time.
“There had been things along the way with Brynn that have made me unclear about her intentions and some of the things that have been said. But I also know that she’s someone who embellishes and so I have chalked it up that many times,” Lyons said. “And I have tenderness around that.”
“I have said this before, I was one of those kids who lied to get what I wanted because I felt unseen and I didn’t feel loved and so I have compassion for that,” she continued. “But I think at some point it kind of went too far. It’s one thing to talk about yourself and embellish, it’s another thing to embellish stories that then hurt other people.”
Going into the reunion, Lyons said the ladies felt “really frustrated” and “a little duped.”
“When someone’s stories turn into putting someone else in a dangerous position or an unhappy position, that changes the game,” she said. “That’s not what we’re here to do. That’s not what this show is about. It’s not what we’re about. And I think we were all feeling a little protective and scared.”
Watch What Happens Live airs Sunday through Thursdays at 10 p.m. ET on Bravo. New episodes are available to stream the next day on Peacock.
If you or someone you know needs to reach out about sexual abuse or assault, RAINN is available 24/7 at 800-656-HOPE (4673), or online at RAINN.org.
