'RHOP' Alum Monique Samuels Finalizes Divorce From Ex-NFL Star Chris Samuels
Sept. 29 2023, Published 12:00 p.m. ET
Three days before The Real Housewives of Potomac Season 8 trailer dropped, ex-cast member Monique Samuels quietly finalized her divorce from her former NFL husband Chris Samuels after more than a decade of marriage, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
Monique, 39, and Chris, 46, appeared on the Bravo franchise for three seasons before her reign abruptly ended following a physical altercation with co-star Candiace Dillard.
News of their split first broke at BravoCon in October 2022. She filed for divorce in June of this year in Montgomery County Family Court; however, the documents remained sealed — as do the divorce details like custody and property.
Monique and Chris share three children: daughter Milani, 8, and sons Christopher, 10, and Chase, 4.
The judge signed off on the paperwork Monday, making their divorce official, reported PEOPLE.
RadarOnline.com has reached out to Monique's team for comment.
Monique made the first move to end their 11-year union by filing a complaint for absolute divorce on April 14. She amended the complaint on June 15, almost two months later.
The couple — who wed in March 2012 — separated last year but vowed to try and make their marriage work. Their relationship issues were highlighted after they left RHOP during their stint on Love & Marriage: D.C.
Monique said her appearance on the reality show was a "cry for help."
"It's no secret that Chris and I have been struggling in some areas of our marriage and anybody who watched Love & Marriage: D.C. last year, y'all saw the arguments, y'all saw everything that was going on," the ex-Bravolebrity stated in a video with Chris.
"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,'" she continued. "So what y'all saw on Love & Marriage: DC last season, it was my cry for help."
At the time, Monique insisted they "weren't getting a divorce" and told fans they were "absolutely not" separating. She credited therapy for helping her leave her marriage.
"I was in therapy and my counselor asked me, 'What is it that you want? If you could have the ideal marriage, if you could have everything you want from a marriage, what is it that you want?' And she told me to write those things down," she recalled during an Instagram Live in July. "Then, she told me, 'If he is unable to do those things for you, and he is the same that he is now and he never changes, are you able to live life with him for the rest of your life?' And she was like, 'I want you to think about it. Next time we meet, we'll talk about it. I don't want you to answer right now,'" Monique said.