Credit: Instagram
Garcelle Beauvais reflected on her decision to quit her role on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills during an interview on Wednesday.
While also discussing upcoming projects and raising awareness about breast cancer, Garcelle, 58, explained the reason behind her Bravo exit, revealed the last time she spoke to Sutton Stracke, 54, and offered an update on her potential return to the series.
“As great of an opportunity as it was to be on the ‘Housewives,’ it was also heavy on my spirit,” Garcelle admitted to Variety on October 1. “Walking away has given me my power back. It’s given me a sense of freedom, and I’m in a good headspace. I want to create. I want to spend time with my family and friends. We live in a crazy world right now, and anywhere you can find joy and hold on to it for a bit is where we should all go. I am enjoying joy, peace and my life at this point.”
After refusing to take a group pic at the season 14 reunion, Garcelle decided it was time to prioritize herself.
“There was a moment where I felt like I no longer belonged here,” she explained. “I no longer fit in here. It was definitely a moment of like, ‘This is not for me.’ It just didn’t feel right.”
Following the release of an exit statement in March, Garcelle unfollowed many of her former co-stars, including Kyle Richards, 56, Erika Jayne, 54, Dorit Kemsley, 49, Bozoma Saint John, 48, and Sutton. She hasn’t spoken to Sutton since the reunion.
As for a full-time return, Garcelle said it wouldn’t happen “anytime soon,” before confirming she was open to appearing in a smaller capacity.
Months after departing Bravo, Garcelle is focused on producing stories about Black women’s experiences. And in addition to continuing her partnership with Lifetime in an upcoming Tempted by Love sequel, she will be working on a third installment of Black Girl Missing, called Taken At a Truck Stop: A Black Girl Missing Movie, which premieres on October 25.
The premise of the program is to spark conversations about systemic inequalities.
“I hope when someone goes missing, people see it in a different way because of these movies,” Garcelle said. “It’s not just another girl. She’s got a family. She’s somebody’s daughter, sister or friend. I want people to have a little bit more compassion when we go missing.”
Garcelle is also the new face of Lifetime’s annual Stop Breast Cancer For Life Campaign.
“Breast cancer is non-discriminatory. It can affect anyone and everyone. That’s an important message to keep out there. And as young women grow up, it’s important to let them know that the message still exists for them. Whether they have breast cancer in their family or not, it’s great to find out what’s going on with your body,” she shared.
According to the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Black women face a 40% higher mortality rate after being diagnosed than others.
“For Black women, I’ve found in my life and growing up in my family that we don’t talk about things that have to do with health,” Garcelle noted. “We have to get away from that, and share information to help one another, so it’s not taboo. It’s not something you whisper and that can help women generationally.”