Danielle Staub Reveals She’ll ‘Never’ Return To ‘RHONJ’ Again: ‘It Is Time For Me To Leave’

The finality of Danielle Staub’s farewell to ‘RHONJ’ even blindsided Andy Cohen! Instead of stirring drama with the New Jersey ladies, Danielle revealed to ‘WWHL’ viewers her new plans going forward.

Danielle Staub, 57, said the word even Andy Cohen, 51, wasn’t expecting to hear on the Jan. 8 episode of Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen: “never.” As in, she’s never returning to The Real Housewives of New Jersey as a full-time cast member! For added dramatic effect, Danielle launched into a long “thank you” sort of monologue before breaking the big news. “Well I have, over the past 12 years and 10 seasons, been a part of this whole franchise and I’ve been very happy to rally and stand on the platform and be here with all of you, but it is time for me to leave and do something that I want to do that makes my heart happy every day,” she began. And then, the bombshell: “And so, I will be never returning as a ‘Housewife’ again.”

Andy quickly cut off Danielle, exclaiming, “Never!?” Given his executive producer role in the Real Housewives franchise, the announcement understandably rocked him. Still in disbelief, he added, “Wow, she’s saying the word n– Okay, I didn’t know you were going to say the word never.” But there was a catch.

“Nope, never returning as a ‘Housewife’ again — with the Jersey girls,” Danielle clarified. It was an “A-ha!” moment for Andy. “Oh, okay, so you’re open to New York or –” the host replied, amused, but Danielle’s not yet thinking too hard about transferring to a sister series. Instead, her mind is on another show — one that’s in the works! “I am going to start my own cooking channel,” Danielle revealed. “Cooking is therapy to me, so I’m basically calling it Cooking Therapy. And I find my peace in the kitchen.”

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Danielle hasn’t actually been a full-time “Housewife” since Season 2 of RHONJ, which aired in 2010. She returned in a “friend” role, however, for Seasons 8-10, and has certainly left her mark on her way out from the show. Danielle infamously dragged Margaret Josephs by the ponytail in an explosive fight that aired in the Jan. 1 episode of RHONJ, after her rival poured water on Danielle’s head inside a retail boutique. Before the hair yank, Danielle’s payback even included arson — she took a few belongings from Margaret’s purse and threw them into a lit candle!

Danielle wasn’t too popular with the other cast members too, apparently, according to a source close to the show who EXCLUSIVELY spoke with HollywoodLife in June of 2019. “The ladies have been begging production all season to cut Danielle, as Teresa [Giudice] and Jen [Jennifer Aydin] were the only ones who would film with her,” the source told us at the time. Even then, Danielle had “violated [Teresa’s] trust,” the source added — months later, another source EXCLUSIVELY explained that “during filming, there was an incident involving Teresa, Danielle and Melissa [Gorga] that cause[d] the rift in their friendship.” Well, at least there’ll be a lot less drama on a cooking show!