‘RHOP’ Alum Monique Samuels and Chris Samuels Reportedly Separating After 10 Years Amid Marital Drama on OWN Reality Show
Another reality TV couple bites the dust. The Real Housewives of Potomac alum Monique Samuels and her longtime husband Chris Samuels are reportedly going their separate ways. The news comes amid filming for Season 2 of the OWN reality series Love & Marriage: D.C. The first season showcased the now-estranged couple’s mounting marital trouble.
Monique Samuels and Chris Samuels reportedly split after the tough first season of ‘Love & Marriage: D.C.’
PEOPLE Magazine reports that sources close to the couple say they’ve separated and are seemingly headed for divorce. The couple wed in 2012 and have three children together. Throughout the first season of the show, Monique complained that Chris was absent emotionally. She also was not happy with his emotional development and growth in their relationship, expressing that she felt he was stagnant and at the same place in their relationship as when they began dating.
Chris felt that Monique was never satisfied either way in their relationship, whether he put forth the effort or not. He also debunked Monique’s allegations that he did the bare minimum in terms of parenting. Fans watched as Monique embarked on a career in radio as host of a local morning show in D.C. as Chris struggled to support her new schedule. Monique made it clear she’d no longer hold off on things she wanted to do.
Fans accused Monique of dragging out their marital issues as it was clear to many that she was checked out of their marriage. She denied such at the reunion special.
Hours after the news broke, in a new Instagram Story, Monique and Chris laugh in a video after Monique asks what he thinks about all of the chatter. They both laugh, and she flashes her engagement ring and wedding band. It’s unclear if the video is new or old, and neither outright shut down the rumors with an official statement.
She previously expressed frustration over repetitive issues in their marriage
In an interview with TV Insider ahead of the first season of the OWN reality series, Monique shot back at backlash regarding fans calling her a nag in her marriage. But Monique says at the time of filming, she’d reached her boiling point with Chris’ stagnant behavior in their relationship.
“These are conversations Chris and I have had over and over again for years. At this point in our marriage that [viewers are] witnessing, I feel I’m at a breaking point: I don’t need you to keep telling me I understand and that you’re working on it,” she said at the time. “I need to see that actual work. It has been 10 years of marriage, and a lot of our same issues kept repeating. What you see is a wife who is on edge. I look back on the episodes and see the realness, but also I could have delivered the message a lot better. You’ll see my husband and I navigate through that. There are some steps toward growth and change in our marriage.”
Furthermore, she admitted that she was on a different level spiritually and emotionally than her husband and wanted him to catch up. “It was important we were on the same page. I do think once we started filming where Chris and I were in the rough patch, he was probably like, “I don’t know about this anymore,” though we were already signed on and committed. I’m a person who will put it all out there. Chris is the opposite,” she added. “That is what you also see, pulling words out of him.”
Similar issues also played out on ‘RHOP’
Love & Marriage: D.C. was not the only time Monique and Chris’ marriage showed cracks. She complained about similar behavior during their four seasons of RHOP, mainly that Chris didn’t help out with their children as much as she liked and lacked in the romance department. Monique believed Chris’ NFL background and being a spoiled athlete contributed to his attitude at times. There were also issues with her mother-in-law, with Chris’ mom not being a fan of Monique.
In their last season of the show, a rumor about Monique having an affair with her personal trainer spread. It was also alleged that Chris might not be the father of their youngest child.
