ET video chatted with the 'Real Housewives of Beverly Hills' star to get her take on season 10, airing Wednesdays on Bravo.
Kyle Richards didn't love how Denise Richards handled herself on the new season of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.
"I feel like when it got hot in the kitchen, she left," the star tells ET’s Lauren Zima via video chat. "Her kind of walking off and not wanting to participate didn't really sit well with the rest of us who show up every day."
"I get frustrated when people don't show up, because that's what we signed up for," she says. "There were so many times where I would have loved to not show up, and so many people I would have loved to not be around at the time, but I never once have done that in 10 years. It was a little frustrating to me."
Denise is at the center of season 10’s drama, as allegations of an extramarital affair between her and former Housewife Brandi Glanville circulated in the group... and the tabloids. Denise has vehemently denied the claims and, last month, told ET that she found the discussion around her personal life to be "disgusting." As seen in teasers for the show, Denise appears to step away from the group to avoid talking about the allegations and also seemingly issued cease and desist letters to try and shut it down.
"Just like last year, right out of the gate the whole 'puppy-gate' thing happened, and this season was no different," Kyle offers, referencing the season nine conflict that ultimately led Lisa Vanderpump to stop filming with her co-stars before exiting the series completely. "Something came up and, obviously, this show is documenting what's going on in our lives and the thing you don't want talked about the most, is definitely going to be talked about."
"Obviously, when you first hear something like that [about a] married woman, it's salacious," she adds. "Oh my gosh. But it's also someone's life and it's like, oh God. Once something is out there, it's out there. I know what it feels like to have something out there about yourself, or your family, and it's painful. It's difficult."
Still, Kyle she would have preferred to see Denise face the conversation head-on, rather than avoid it. Former co-stars have dealt with addiction, cheating scandals, divorces and even deaths on camera.
"It was really strange to me," she admits. "After a decade of doing this show, we've had so many things that have been really difficult. The stuff that happened between my sister [Kim] and me. And I mean, what Taylor Armstrong went through, Camille [Grammer] -- everybody -- and nobody ever walked away."
"I didn't even think that was an option, because we're here documenting our lives and that's what we signed up for," she continues. "So, I was a little taken aback. Like, this is what you signed up for and, unfortunately, it's hard, but it's not just all fun and going to parties."
"You can't just pick and choose what you want to show," Kyle adds. "Otherwise, we wouldn't be on the air still. We're documenting our lives. The good, the bad and the ugly."
Kyle says she found Denise’s way of handling the situation confusing, because in season nine -- Denise's first on the show -- she was an open book, willing to discuss anything, it seemed.
"But you just never know when it's not on your terms," she says. "[What] happens often with a second season Housewife is, they'll kind of see what people didn't like or got upset about and they may kind of, like, sort of try to censor themselves and it's just, that doesn't always work. So, you know, I think that she was like, ‘Uh oh. Maybe I went too far with talking about that the happy endings and all that stuff.'"
Denise famously, or maybe at this point infamously, shared the story of how she sought out a "happy ending" massage for her husband last season.
"I think a lot of people are kind of naive coming into this," Kyle notes. "I remember Denise's first season, she was asking where craft services was and I was, like, ‘Honey, this is a reality show. There is no craft services.’ So, yeah, it's definitely kind of shocking when you join the show."
Kyle says, for now, she’s not sure if Denise will return to the show, but admits that she would "love to see her continue."
"Now with that said, not everybody can handle it," she adds.
She also shares that, when the cast wrapped filming, they were not all on good terms, but the coronavirus pandemic has, weirdly, brought them back together, at least temporarily.
"Here's the deal, a lot of us weren't talking and then, honestly, my partner with my clothing line, Shahida [Parides], she was able to get 8,000 N95 masks and my husband and I donated some to New York," Kyle says. "I reached out to the cast in a group text and I said, 'Listen, would you like to as a group donate 5,000 masks to Los Angeles hospitals?' And they all immediately replied,' Yes, yes, yes.' And they were really happy to donate these masks to the hospitals here in L.A. as a group. And it felt really nice, because, you know? It sort of broke the ice while we're doing a nice thing together. So, that felt good. With that said, by reunion time nobody will be talking again."
Kyle is currently isolating at her home in Los Angeles with her family, and says the experience is kind of like being on an endless Housewives cast trip.
"You know, obviously minus the anxiety and stress of what's going on in the world, we've had some really great family moments," she shares. "And we're trying to make the most out of this time."
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on Bravo.
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