‘Real Housewives of New Jersey’ season 6: Reason for cast shake-up; Kathy Wakile’s status

Bravo -Why are there so many new people joining “The Real Housewives of New Jersey” for season 6? Bravo feels like at this point that the best way for the show to move forward is to strip away some of the darkness, and keep the tone lighter and happier, as it has been at times in the past.

Speaking to In Touch, a source makes it clear first and foremost that the goal of the “Real Housewives” franchise has always been to provide some light and at times silly entertainment, and not necessarily to force everyone into watching something miserable:

“The show got really dark. They needed to bring in new faces to get back to some of the lighter drama that everyone loves from the Real Housewives franchise.”

This source was also kind enough to offer some sort of comment on the fate of Kathy Wakile, who was a full-time cast member for the past few seasons. She will still be around, but presumably in a recurring role in the same way that we saw Brandi Glanville for her first season on “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills,” or Marlo Hampton when she was a part of “The Real Housewives of Atlanta.” She will surface here and there, but not be one of the major parts of the story. With Jacqueline Laurita presumably out, this could mean that Teresa Giudice and Melissa Gorga are the only two returning full-time housewives; if you add in the three reported new faces and also Dina Manzo to go along with it, then you’re at a cast of six (the largest for the show) along with Kathy as a “friend of the Housewives.”

In the end, what could be the most interesting part of this new dynamic is that it could actually force Teresa and Melissa to really work together, since they would be at a point where they would not have so many allies or other people to fall back on. After getting completely immersed in the drama over the course of the past couple of seasons, we consider anything that will convince these ladies to get along as a good thing.

What do you think: Will change be good for the show, or sink what was a program that you enjoyed? Be sure to share your thoughts below!

Photo: Bravo

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