Real Housewives of New York City Season 12 Trailer: No Bethenny Frankel, but Plenty of Drama
There’s still big drama in the Big Apple, even without Bethenny Frankel!
On Tuesday, Bravo dropped the explosive trailer for season 12 of The Real Housewives of New York City — the reality show’s first season in five years that won’t feature the original Housewife and SkinnyGirl founder.
While Frankel will be gone when the season premieres in April , there still seems to be plenty of action to be had with current Housewives, including fellow OGs Ramona Singer and Luann de Lesseps; longtime Housewives Sonja Morgan, Dorinda Medley, and Tinsley Mortimer; as well as new Housewife Leah McSweeney.
The women are at one another’s throats throughout the trailer, with Medley screaming at McSweeney, Singer and de Lesseps.
In fact, it looks like it might be a rough season overall for Medley as she reaches a breaking point.
“We want to help you, don’t you understand?” Singer screams at her at one point. “There’s a problem here and we want to help you, you’re not getting it.”
Elsewhere in the clip, de Lesseps sobriety journey takes a turn as she begins drinking again, after completing parole. And Mortimer announces that she’s moving to Chicago to be with her boyfriend (and now fiancé) Scott Kluth — though their reconciliation looks to put her on the outs with the group.
RELATED: Leah McSweeney Is Bravo’s Newest Real Housewives of New York City Star
McSweeney was announced as New York City’s newest Housewife at BravoCon in November. She made her debut during the fan convention’s Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen taping, where host Andy Cohen asked for her impressions of her castmates.
“They’re all unique individuals, but they’re all very badass,” she said.
Of course, McSweeney knows something about being badass herself. Founder and CEO of streetwear-inspired fashion line Married to the Mob, McSweeney has had a long career as an entrepreneur and businesswoman, her take-no prisoners attitude helping her find success.
On the personal side, she’s also a mother to 12-year-old daughter Kier, whom she shares with her ex-husband, Rob McSweeney.
“She’s quite a little number. I really like her,” Medley told Bravo’s Daily Dish in November. “She’s really good.”
Added de Lesseps, in in a January interview on SiriusXM: “She’s gorgeous, she’s really beautiful. And what I like about her is she is somebody who is self-made and vulnerable at the same time. So I think people can relate to her.”
RELATED: Luann de Lesseps Spills on New RHONY Cast Member Leah McSweeney: ‘People Can Relate to Her’
As for Frankel, she’s doing quite fine away from the RHONY cameras.
The businesswoman is working on a few new entertainment projects, she told Variety in September, including two new “female-centric” programs with producer Mark Burnett and MGM television — one, a “soft-scripted” comedy series which she will produce and another, a competition series with a business twist in which she will star.
In addition to her other ventures — like Skinnygirl Jeans, Skinnygirl Supplements, her numerous investments and her many speaking opportunities — Frankel has remained busy with her philanthropic efforts. Her B Strong foundation, known for providing real time emergency assistance to people in crisis, recently turned its efforts to those affected by the deadly Australian wildfires.
Aside from all of that, Frankel is a busy mom to 9-year-old daughter Bryn, whom she shares with ex Jason Hoppy. She’s also found love again, with boyfriend of over a year, Paul Bernon.
“Things are wonderful,” Frankel told PEOPLE in December. “He’s a good person who I love. I don’t know if it’s a yin to my yang, but he’s really relaxed, he’s mellow and he’s very, very funny.”
Frankel first announced she would leaving RHONY in August, explaining that she was hoping to put her energy on highlighting “the strength, confidence and unstoppable power that women have.”
Since then, she’s soaked up her time away from the spotlight.
“I feel calm, balanced and more connected to my daughter,” she told PEOPLE in December. “If you’re trying to cram so many things into your life, it’s not so calm and balanced if you have so many other things going on. So there’s a freedom now. I don’t want to be constantly white-knuckling and defining myself by how busy I am.”
“It’s nice to be missed,” she added. “But it’s nice to be living the life I’m living now, which is another chapter and really a safer space.”
The Real Housewives of New York City season 12 premieres Thursday, April 2 (at 9 p.m. ET/PT) on Bravo.
