Monique Samuels and Chris Samuels appeared to be the perfect addition to Real Housewives of Potomac. Chris, a former NFL player, his gorgeous wife Monique, and their three adorable children presented the picture of a perfect family of means that RHOP fans were eager to get to know as they were unlike previous couples on the reality TV show.
Chris was a star athlete for his entire life. He played college ball for the Alabama Crimson Tide, before starting a successful ten years with the Washington Commanders. The six-time pro-bowl selection was totally eclipsed on the show by his beautiful wife Monique. Besides her model-like bone structure, Monique was one of the best-dressed housewives on television. Her confessional looks were flawless, and she was consistent when interacting with the other ladies.
Besides looking the part, Monique struggled to get along with the other ladies. She looked like a privileged housewife but her attitude was anything but. In addition to hiccups with the other ladies, the relationship between Monique and Chris appeared strained at the very least. On RHOP, the children and the continued rocky interaction with the other ladies provided the perfect distraction for her marital issues, but audiences predicted there was trouble ahead with the Samuels.
As audiences got to know Monique, it became clear that she had stars in her eyes from the time she was a young girl. Before marrying Chris, Monique was a rapper with a plan to launch her career into a major space in hip-hop culture.
Monique made it clear that she sacrificed her hopes and dreams after meeting and falling in love with Chris. When they married, Chris was in the prime of his career, so there was no room for Monique to chase her personal goals if she wanted a successful marriage. The couple immediately started having children and Monique settled, albeit a bit begrudgingly, into a homemaker role.
Monique's Internal Unhappiness Spilled Into Her Relationships With the Ladies On 'RHOP'
Things got even more uncomfortable for Monique and the ladies in RHOP. By her third season, she ended up quitting the show after a violent outburst that resulted in a brawl.
Monique was unapologetic for her violent attack on Candiace Dillard Bassett, even after it resulted in her being let go from the show. In interviews, Monique insinuated that she was destined for superstardom before she decided to let her career go and to support her husband.
Some suggested that Monique seemed resentful of dimming her light for her husband.
The Samuels left RHOP and showed up as the primary couple in Carlos King’sLove & Marriage DC. In Potomac, the marriage took a backseat to Monique’s interaction with the other ladies, but in DC, Samuel’s marriage was on full display in this series.
Monique’s resentment towards Chris was apparent and fans complained about her constantly berating her husband on camera. Chris came off as very patient and accommodating in his retirement years, making audiences empathize with him even more due to his patience with his wife.
Monique Is Fed-Up With Marriage In 'Love & Marriage DC'
Potomac wasn’t a great fit for the Samuels and DC proved to be a bad idea as well. Monique was painted as the bad guy in the marriage as the vast majority of the audience blasted her for the way she spoke to her husband regularly. Fans who followed the couple from Potomac to DC were shocked to see the dysfunction that was lying beneath the surface in Samuel’s picture-perfect 10-year marriage.
After one season, Monique announced the couple would not be returning to Love & Marriage DC. Fans of the show weren’t surprised, but it seemed a strange move for a couple that Carlos King created the show around them to then abruptly opt out after one season.
Staying on brand, Monique was unapologetic about her decision to leave Love & Marriage DC and defended herself against the backlash about her treatment of her husband. She insisted the edits weren’t in her favor but assured fans that they were in a great place.
The story about Samuel’s marriage being intact was short-lived. Several months after leaving the show, Chris and Monique admitted they were separated but insisted the marriage was not in danger.
Monique backtracked in a video posted on her YouTube channel admitting the issues that fans voiced were in-fact a sign that the marriage was in trouble. “It's no secret that Chris and I have been struggling in some areas of our marriage and anybody who watched Love & Marriage: D.C. last year, y'all saw the arguments, y'all saw everything that was going on."
Audiences Weren't Surprised When Monique Filed For Divorce
Anyone familiar with this script wasn’t surprised when a few months passed and the couple announced they were divorcing. Monique again backtracked with her followers acknowledging her behavior, on Love & Marriage DC,“
It was a lot of confusion, it was crazy building up to that 10-year marker of our marriage, and when you’ve been married that long and when you have things that you’re like, 'Listen, this is being unmet, or I’ve been unheard’ you start to get frustrated, and it’s like, ‘Oh, my God, is this what life is going to be? I can’t take it anymore,'" she explained.
"So what y'all saw on Love & Marriage: D.C. last season, it was my cry for help."
Monique’s cry for help potentially started years before her introduction to RHOP. She acknowledged she was miserable in the marriage and that the problems in the marriage weren’t fixable. She also acknowledged the issues weren’t solely because of her husband and she shared much of the blame for the breakdown of the marriage.
Monique Saw 'RHOP' As a Vehicle To Launch Her Into Stardom
It’s quite possible that Monique’s choice to abandon her career came back to haunt her 10 years later. For someone with early aspirations to be a superstar, the opportunity to be a reality star was probably a great opportunity to reclaim the life of stardom left behind years ago.
Unfortunately, Monique realized her newfound stardom was directly attached to her football star husband and that could’ve made the opportunity turn bitter in her mouth. Monique is currently on the radio and the couple's divorce was finalized in September 2023. She hasn’t sworn off reality TV, but it’s clear if she is brought back to prime-time television it would be on her own terms.
Monique’s tale proves women should never dim their light for marriage or support a man unless it’s 100% what they want to do for their future. If a woman even thinks she may regret her decision years later, it’s not the right decision.
Monique’s assumption that joining the cast of RHOP would make up for sacrificing her initial hopes and dreams fell flat. Now that she has the opportunity to chase her personal happiness, it wouldn’t shock fans if Monique circled the block with Love & Marriage DC or The Real Housewives of Potomac.
