Why ‘Buying Beverly Hills’ Follows Kyle Richards and Mauricio Umansky’s Split More Than ‘RHOBH’
After Netflix's Buying Beverly Hills teased a larger look into Mauricio Umansky's marriage issues, Kyle Richards is answering to angry Real Housewives of Beverly Hills fans.
“[Our decision to separate] happened after we were done filming [season 13]," Richards, 55, detailed on Amazon Live, which streamed on Thursday, February 29. "[Then] the story came out and then the Netflix cameras happened to be in Aspen."
She added: "[Netflix] ended up filming with us talking about it."
Richards said she made an effort to document key moments for RHOBH after filming wrapped.
"Obviously, Bravo has been following my life for 13 years. It’s not like they can film that scene [for Buying Beverly Hills] and then I don’t share it with the viewers of the Housewives," she noted. "We ended up shooting both of those scenes for Buying Beverly Hills and The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills after we were all wrapped.”
Us Weekly originally confirmed Richards and Umansky’s separation in July 2023. During season 13 of RHOBH, Richards hinted at issues in her marriage but it wasn't until pickup scenes in the finale that viewers saw the couple candidly discuss their decision to part ways.
“There were things that happened that made me lose my trust that I wasn’t able to recover from,” Richards said on the February 21 episode. “It just felt like my whole life was over in that moment. The life as I knew it.”
RHOBH’s Kyle Richards and Husband Mauricio Umansky’s Relationship Timeline
Buying Beverly Hills, which focuses on Umansky’s real estate company, has released several clips hinting at the split being a major story line.
“I had an amazing 26 years with your mom. An amazing 26 years. I wanted to do everything possible to just save it. So your mom came and she talked to me. And she said, ‘I think I need space,'" Umansky, 53, told his and Richards' kids, Farrah, 35, Alexia, 27, Sophia, 23, and Portia, 15, in the first official look at season 2 of Buying Beverly Hills.
He continued: “She said to me, ‘Listen, the rules are that you go out, you date, you do whatever it is you want to do. I’m not going to be asking you what you’re doing. I don’t want you to be asking me what I’m doing. Like we are separated.'"
Every Time Kyle Richards Hints at Mauricio Umansky Separation During ‘RHOBH’ Season 13
After news broke about their separation, Umansky and Richards denied in a joint statement that infidelity played a role in their decision. Richards noted on Thursday's Amazon Live that the pair are now allowed to date other people.
"That’s a big question. We’re allowed to," Richards, who has denied dating her friend country singer Morgan Wade, added. "We’re allowed to do what we want."
According to Richards, there have also been discussions about moving out of their shared home. “Yes, that’s a conversation that’s happening," she said. "We’re fortunate that we don’t fight, and we get along, so it actually oddly works.”
The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills airs Wednesdays on Bravo at 8 p.m. ET. Season 2 of Buying Beverly Hills drops on Netflix on March 22.
