If the former first lady is a fan, the “P” in "RHOP" may as well stand for presidential.
Seven seasons in, the ladies of Bravo’s “The Real Housewives of Potomac” have risen to prominence as a star in Bravo’s hallmark franchise, and even Michelle Obama recently revealed she’s a fan. Robyn Dixon’s reaction? “I’m sad that we have to disappoint her with our fighting sometimes, so hopefully we can work on that.”
Dixon has been a "RHOP" castmate all seven seasons, alongside fellow OGs Gizelle Bryant (Dixon’s “green-eyed bandit” bestie), Karen Huger, and Ashley Darby, and veterans Candiace Dilliard-Bassett, Dr. Wendy Osefo and Mia Thornton. This season, two friends of the cast have also joined the mix: "RHOP" OG Charisse Jackson-Jordan and best friend to Thornton, Jacqueline Blake.
TODAY.com chatted with Dixon to hear all about what’s happened thus far in Season Seven, and what’s to come.
Dixon wishes Dillard-Bassett would have received rumors about her husband differently
With seven seasons under her belt, Dixon says the cast “knows how to get the job done” while filming the show.
Part of the job she’s deep in the drama on this season is the ongoing feud between Bryant and Dillard-Bassett over allegations that Dilliard-Bassett’s husband, Chris, made Bryant uncomfortable in a conversation after the Season Six reunion taping.
Bryant’s allegation came after Darby expressed to Dixon that Chris had slid into her DMs late at night inviting her to the bar he works at, causing a stir in the group about Chris’ behavior. Dixon has been a vocal supporter of Chris’ innocence, expressing that his actions were friendly all along due to his existing cordiality with Bryant, Darby and Dixon herself.
Dixon tells TODAY.com, “I don’t want to downplay what Gizelle was saying, but I know that Chris didn’t intentionally try to make her uncomfortable, or he didn’t have intentions to do something bad, but I still think it’s fair for Gizelle to say, ‘You know what, I was uncomfortable in that situation.’”
“She honestly that same night told me she was uncomfortable in that situation and maybe felt the need to tell Candiace. I was hoping that Candiace would receive it differently,” Dixon adds.
Why Dilliard-Bassett reacted the way she did? Dixon says, “the problem was that this was on the heels of Ashley telling her about the DM. So I think Candiace’s head starts spinning and she’s thinking that they were in cahoots because she’s just like, there’s no way Ashley’s coming to me and Gizelle is coming to me. So I think that’s what made it even worse. ... It’s just unfortunate that it’s playing out the way it’s playing out.”
Darby and Dilliard-Bassett have sparred frequently over the years, namely over controversies surrounding Darby’s husband (who she is currently separated from, as Virginia law requires separation for a year before divorce). Dixon noted that although she doesn’t think Darby was out to get Chris, Darby may have been excited to receive a DM that could be used against Dilliard-Bassett and her husband.
Dixon says, “My first reaction was like, Chris is not that stupid to do something that sloppy with Candiace’s almost arch nemesis on the show. He’s not that dumb.”
“I’m pretty sure Ashley was like, ‘Yes, I got something!” Dixon adds.
Although we don’t know for sure how Darby felt, we do know that her husband allegedly showed up to Dillard-Bassett’s recent concert in the Bahamas.
Dixon reacted, “it’s so random. I almost feel like I should have played like the lottery or something. The stars are aligned right now for them to be in the same hotel at the same time. It’s so crazy. I want to know if they were talking and what was said.”
Don’t we all, Robyn, don’t we all.
Dixon clarified her remarks to Osefo during the Miami cast trip
Another feud that Dixon has found herself in the center of? Osefo vs. Thornton, which exploded on the cast trip to Miami over allegations that Osefo was practicing bad business with Peter Thomas, a former husband of ex-"RHOA" wife Cynthia Bailey who’s popped up on "RHOP" this season.
Dixon says that the feud between the pair “really wasn’t that big of a deal” in the moment, but by the looks of social media, it may be one of the biggest moments of the season.
Dixon received a lot of backlash on social media for her involvement in the situation, over the fact that she seemingly was only criticizing Osefo’s actions after Thornton started the fight by throwing a drink at Osefo.
Dixon tells TODAY.com, “Mia was wrong for throwing the drink. I wish she didn’t do it. But my thing with Wendy was I really wanted her to stop because I didn’t want her to do something that she would regret that jeopardized her job or her reputation.”
Dixon continues, “I explained to her that you have more to lose than Mia. ... When I’m telling her ‘you’re being antagonistic,’ I’m telling her that because I’m saying you’re gonna make her do something that you don’t want her to do, because you don’t want to be caught up in it. So that was my whole point, and I’m upset that they didn’t really express that.”
Osefo drew a parallel between the situation with her and Thornton and the fight that rocked Potomac during Season Five between Dillard-Bassett and Monique Samuels. In that situation, Dixon was a strong proponent of Samuels being in the wrong, contrary to what many saw as Dilliard-Bassett’s antagonistic behavior towards Samuels.
Dixon says, “I don’t even understand the comparison. To me, it was two totally different things. ... In my opinion, throwing water on someone’s face is messed up. But to equate it to Monique grabbing Candiace and punching her multiple times, I just couldn’t make the connection.”
“It just didn’t turn into that situation. Like we weren’t like, ‘Oh my god, Mia’s horrible, or Wendy did this.’ It wasn’t one of those things where we were taking sides. It was just like, ‘okay, this has got to stop,” Dixon added.
“With the Monique thing, the violence was not OK, but I was more upset about what happened afterward with the social media, the manipulation, the lying and all of that.”
Since TODAY spoke with Dixon, Thornton addressed her actions via Twitter.
Dixon addressed other ‘RHOP’ hot topics
In true "RHOP" fashion, the drama doesn’t stop with the season’s main events.
Thornton has been repeatedly caught in situations where she manipulated her castmates’ words or came up with untrue statements to cause strife in the group, causing comedic moments of miscommunication.
Addressing Thornton’s behavior, Dixon says, “Part of me thinks that she isn’t forgetful of what she said or what the truth is. I kind of think sometimes she’s just like, ‘OK, I’m just gonna make TV.’”
Thornton brought her best friend, Jacqueline Blake, into the group this year, and between shady editors and social media stir, it’s apparent that all may not be well between the besties today.
Dixon teased what’s to come between Thornton and Blake, and said, “There’s definitely a thing. I definitely think one is really wrong, and it’s not going to be good for her when people see it play out.”
Only eight episodes into Season Seven, it’s clear that there’s much more tea coming from “the P.”
Dixon says, “you’ll be entertained and intrigued. Every week, the fans will be losing their minds on social media and debating nonstop.”
What Dixon has learned from her seven years on reality television? “I’m a crazy person for doing reality TV,” Dixon says.
Dixon plays ‘RHOP’ rapid fire
Dixon answered rapid-fire questions about the rest of Season Seven.
On who causes the most drama: Dixon
On who brings the most receipts: Dixon
On who she feuds with the most: Everyone! “I’m equal opportunity when it comes to that,” Dixon said.
On who she will have the most to say to at the reunion: Huger
On the feud she wishes would resolve itself: Bryant and Dillard-Bassett
On who has the best storyline: Dixon
The person she wishes would come back full time: Katie Rost. “Katie is always a hoot, you never know what you’re going to get. I’d love to see old Katie come back,” Dixon says.