Caroline Manzo's Real Housewives days are done. The Bravo star, 52, confirmed on Sunday, Oct. 13, that she's leaving The Real Housewives of New Jersey after five seasons — news first revealed exclusively by Us Weekly in late September.
Manzo announced her decision on Twitter after part two of the show's reunion special, telling her 696,600 followers: "It's been wonderful, guys. I've decided to leave #RHONJ. This season was my last. Love and kisses to you all. xoxoxo."
She also included a link to her Bravo blog, where she explained her reasons for leaving. "Over the past couple of years, Bravo and I have had numerous conversations regarding my position on Housewives, and they accept and understand where I'm coming from," she began.
"When we started filming Housewives so long ago, [my husband] Al made me promise him one thing. He said, 'Just be yourself and have fun with it,'" Manzo wrote. "I've always prided myself on giving you the truth of who I really am, the good, the bad, and the ugly."
She went on to say that the series had evolved from something she "couldn't wait to show [her] future grandchildren" to something she hoped her future grandchildren would never see. "For me, peace and integrity cannot be bought with money or fame," she said. "I simply feel that my role has run its course and I have nothing more to give."
Manzo won't be disappearing from the spotlight completely, though. As previously reported, she recently filmed a pilot for her own Bravo spinoff, Manzo'd With Children. If the show is picked up, she wrote, viewers will get "a very different look into the world of the Manzo family."
"We are having an absolute blast filming it, and I hope you all join us as we start our new chapter within the Bravo network," she said. "We didn't close the book, we just turned the page."
The tough-talking mother of three was one of RHONJ's original cast members when it debuted back in 2009. Although plans for season six have yet to be revealed, her sister-in-law Jacqueline Laurita and Teresa Giudice are the only women who remain from that inaugural season; by the end of season two, fellow Housewives Dina Manzo (Caroline's younger, estranged sister) and Danielle Staub had both departed. Current cast members (at press time) also include Giudice's sister-in-law Melissa Gorga and cousin Kathy Wakile.
