The real-life war of words between the former 'RHOBH' co-stars is escalating.
The most intense drama surrounding The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills isn't playing out on TV, but rather over Twitter, where accusations, insinuations and less-than-subtle insults are flying fast.
After a season full of drama -- over "Puppygate" and more -- escalated to Lisa Vanderpump's announcement that she would not be returning to the franchise, an online war of words was sparked when Vanderpump's husband, Ken Todd, took to Twitter on Sunday to share a message defending his wife, and slamming what he called the "pettiness" of her castmates, including Kyle Richards.
After the second half of the RHOBH Season 9 reunion special -- which Vanderpump refused to be a part of -- aired on Tuesday, Richards took to Twitter to deliver a fiery, impassioned 29-tweet diatribe detailing her problems with Vanderpump, and slamming Todd's lengthy message.
"The Real Housewives follows a group of women’s lives and how they navigate through their friendships . We are followed by cameras that capture what we say and do. We are expected to be honest and say how we feel about any given situation," Richards wrote in her lengthy series of posts. "The Real Housewives is NOT Lifestyles Of The Rich and Famous. It is not Sex [and] the City. It is not scripted. It’s our reality."
"I have made mistakes, made good choices, made bad choices, learned a lot and grown as a person. This season has left me so frustrated at times. Frustrated that people don’t always seem to see the obvious. No, It’s not editing. It’s people who are good at 'the game'. Bad people can be good at it and good people can be bad at it," Richards continued, seemingly shading Vanderpump to a degree. "People who have spent their entire life treating life as a game and 'winning' at it have had lots of practice."
Then, Richards directly addressed Todd's lengthy statement, which slammed her and her fellow co-stars, including Dorit Kemsley, Camille Grammer and others.
"Ken is angry because the cast 'bullied' Lisa when she was going through a hard time. Forgetting the fact that being honest isn’t bullying AND the fact that I resisted using any adjective in that realm when Ken got up in my face," Richards wrote, implying that she has had heated interactions with Todd in the past.
As for the "hard time" Vanderpump has been going through, the reality star has undoubtedly faced a difficult year following the unexpected deaths of her brother, Mark, and her mother, Jean.
"If you’re going through a hard time then you would think you would be coming from a different place. Not scheming about how to make your friend look bad. Your close friend. The problem is it was not new behavior due to her having a hard time," Richards continued. "It was a pattern that you would think would stop because she WAS going through a hard time. This pattern many of us had seen for so long it was hard to ignore."
Richards also raised an issue she had with Todd's statement in which he dredged up the off-screen legal problems and personal issues facing certain RHOBH stars' husbands and families.
"Amongst the women in the cast. We talked about something that happened ON CAMERA. Something that couldn’t be ignored because it changed the dynamic of the group," Richards said, referring to the recurring season 9 drama surrounding so-called "Puppygate."
However, she added that they didn't discuss their families' private issues because, "Our children and husbands are not signed up or paid to be on the show."
"Over these 9 years we never discussed Ken’s and Lisa’s lawsuits (one came up briefly last year and I actually defended Ken and shot it down) we also never got into Lisa’s family, where she comes from or her background," Richards wrote.
Richards also addressed the Puppygate drama directly. The lengthy drama revolves around a puppy known as Lucy Lucy Apple Juice, whom Kemsley adopted from Vanderpump Dogs, before giving it to another home after the small pup allegedly bit her husband and child. The family Kemsley gave the puppy too later supposedly gave the dog to a "kill shelter," before Vanderpump Dogs, the reality star's pet store and animal foundation, got it back safely.
But the tension between the castmembers didn't stem simply from Kemsley giving the dog up, but rather the question of who made Kemsley's action public knowledge, with many of the housewives believing it was Vanderpump herself who spread the news in an effort to embarrass Kemsley. Vanderpump has staunchly denied the allegations, and even took a lie detector test to clear her name.
However, Richards claimed in her tweetstorm that she knew that Vanderpump was planning on orchestrating drama "when I was told to go to Vanderpump Dogs way back at the beginning of the season."
"I was brought there to unknowingly be a part of making Dorit look bad for entertainment purposes I suppose. Trust me, I know you think she didn’t need much help," Richards wrote. "Dorit made a mistake. She should have turned the dog back into Vanderpump Dogs. There is no disputing that."
"Maybe it was the $5,000 return policy that made Dorit think finding a good home for Lucy on her own was a better choice. I don’t know," she added. "I do know that a dog not working out in someone’s home does not make them an 'animal hater'. And I am an animal lover."
On Thursday, Vanderpump herself hopped on Twitter to slam Richards' rant, and to specifically refute certain claims, including a supposed misunderstanding about the "$5,000 return policy" Richards mentioned.
"No if you DO NOT return the dog to the center it’s 5k … It’s in place to protect the animals. Geez," Vanderpump replied to one fan, who said they were shocked over the misunderstood policy. She then explained to another Twitter user, "Even after a year she doesn’t understand. [It's] 5k if you dump one of our dogs, to ensure that it will be returned to us if there is a problem."
Responding to the bulk of Richards' posts not detailing Puppygate, Vanderpump replied to a fan saying, "It’s ironic, now I’m not so hurt I can be more objective."
"If I wanted to hurt any of them there were so many things going on,lawsuits,bankruptcies,shops failing,shows cancelled,loans in default etc and I never said a word," she wrote. "Me on the other hand oh I am a liar,coward,sniper,bad teeth,awful friend,terrible wine,the list goes on..awful really."
It’s ironic,now I’m not so hurt I can be more objective, if I wanted to hurt any of them there were so many things going on,lawsuits,bankruptcies,shops failing,shows cancelled,loans in default etc and I never said a word.
— Lisa Vanderpump (@LisaVanderpump) July 25, 2019
Me on the other hand oh I am a liar,coward,sniper,bad teeth,awful friend,terrible wine,the list goes on..awful really.
— Lisa Vanderpump (@LisaVanderpump) July 25, 2019
Glad I stepped away.
Also pump rules has been amazing this year.
"Glad I stepped away," the reality star wrote, referring to her high-profile departure from the series after nine years, before promoting her other hit reality series, adding, "Also pump rules has been amazing this year."
The latest volleys in the Puppygate war were waged between Richards and John Sessa, executive director for Vanderpump Dogs. According to production emails Sessa posted to Twitter on Wednesday, the show had the pet store sign shoot releases four days before they ever found out about Lucy Lucy Apple Juice. According to Sessa, this proves Vanderpump did not intentionally set Kemsley up for ridicule or embarrassment, as they had already planned on filming segments related to the shop.
Richards subsequently denied Sessa's argument, responding, "John, [with] all due respect, they ALWAYS have us sign location agreements before every season. At my stores as well."
Undoubtedly this won't be the last fans hear about Puppygate, or the vitriol between Richards and Vanderpump.
For more on all the latest RHOBH off-screen, real life drama, check out the video below.
RELATED CONTENT:
