‘RHOP’ Alum Monique Samuels on Why She and Husband Chris Live in Separate Houses
Fans of The Real Housewives of Potomac were aware of the marital issues between Chris and Monique Samuels before they began appearing on the OWN spinoff of Love & Marriage: Huntsville. But many were surprised at how bad things had gotten between the couple by the time they began appearing on the OWN series. With their marriage in crisis mode, many weren’t shocked that they were reportedly separated, but they are denying the reports in full. Instead, they say they are working on themselves individually in order to become a stronger couple.
The former ‘RHOP’ stars are reportedly separated
PEOPLE Magazine reported that sources close to the Samuels’ revealed they were separated and seemingly headed for divorce. The couple wed in 2012 and have three children together. Throughout the first season OWN’s Love & Marriage: D.C., Monique complained that Chris was emotionally absent. She also was not happy with his emotional development, expressing that she felt he was stagnant.
Chris felt that Monique was never satisfied with him. He also debunked Monique’s allegations that he did not assist in household duties or parenting responsibilities. Monique opted to focus on her own personal growth, embarking on a career in radio as host of a local morning show, with her wanting Chris to find his own passion as a retired athlete.
Fans accused Monique of dragging out their marital issues and claimed she was checked out of her marriage. She denied such at the reunion special.
Monique Samuels says she and her husband Chris are living in separate houses to try and salvage their marriage
In a lengthy YouTube video, the Samuels’ addressed PEOPLE’s exclusive, noting that they felt the publication did poor reporting by not fact-checking. But, the couple say that while they are separated and spending an adequate amount of time apart, they have not split.
“We have multiple homes…we decided we were going to spend a couple of nights apart while we were on our counseling journeys,” Monique explained, adding that it’s been a positive impact on their relationship. “We’ve been communicating a lot better than what we have in a long time. We are most definitely still together, we haven’t given up on our marriage, we did not break up, and we are not looking to divorce. We are simply trying to be better.”
The couple say their decision to try this route is due to the problems they showcased on the OWN reality series. “It was a lot of confusion, it was crazy building up to that 10-year marker of our marriage and when you’ve been married that long and when you have things that you’re like ‘Listen, this is being unmet or I’ve been unheard’ you start to get frustrated and it’s like ‘Oh my god, is this what life is going to be? I can’t take it anymore.’ So what y’all saw on ‘Love & Marriage: DC’ last season, it was my cry for help,” Monique added.
Ashley Darby hinted at Monique Samuels’ separation at 2022 BravoCon
One of the people to corroborate reports of Monique and Chris’ separation was Darby. She revealed during a panel at 2022 BravoCon that she’d had lunch with Monique recently, and her former co-star was going through some personal challenges in her marriage. After the report, Darby confirmed that Monique told her she and Chris were separated.
But the Samuels’ don’t blame Darby for spilling the tea. In their YouTube video, Monique said: “A lot of people were trying to throw Ashley under the bus. Ashley is innocent, leave her alone. She did not start this stuff.”
