Denise Richards was in talks to return to ‘Real Housewives of Beverly Hills’ before she quit.
The 49-year-old actress was confirmed by her representative last week to be leaving the Bravo show after just two seasons, and show boss Andy Cohen has now revealed he had originally been negotiating a deal with Denise to keep her on the reality series, but admitted they ultimately failed to come to an agreement.
Speaking to PeopleTV’s ‘Reality Check’, Andy said: "I’m just sad we couldn’t reach an agreement for next season. I’m kind of living in that sadness.
"We were negotiating a deal with her and we couldn’t reach an agreement on the deal."
Denise’s departure came as recent episodes have seen her clash with the majority of the cast in the wake of co-star Brandi Glanville claiming they had slept together, an allegation denied by the actress.
Brandi previously made her allegation to her fellow housewives Kyle Richards, Dorit Kemsley, Teddi Mellencamp Arroyave, Lisa Rina and Erika Girardi at a sit-down dinner.
She said: "I f***** her, woke up the next morning [and] she said, ‘Aaron [Phypers, Denise’s husband] can never know this. He’ll kill me.’"
The claim prompted a shocked reaction from the cast members, but when they later confronted Denise about Brandi’s accusation, she denied cheating on her spouse.
The actress – who has been married to Aaron since 2018 – responded: "What the f***? That is not true!"
Denise later threatened to quit the reality show if the production team didn’t edit the speculation out of the show.
She said: "Bravo has a choice. If they ever want me to be on the show … they need to cut that."
And friends previously admitted the ‘Wild Things’ star didn’t "feel comfortable" about returning to the show.
A source said: "Denise has made it clear she doesn’t want to return and doesn’t feel comfortable returning. She has expressed it was emotionally stressful and took a toll on her mental health."