After eight years, Bravo is bringing back ‘The Real Housewives of Miami’ and bringing it back with a bang. Among the newest season's cast is Julia Lemigovia, who will be the first LGBTQ+ housewife in the franchise’s history.
While others have come out as LGBTQ+ during the show’s seasons, Lemigova will be the first to openly identify as such from casting.
Lemigova, a former Russian model and mother of two, won the title of Miss USSR in 1990 and was second runner-up at Miss Universe 1991. In 2014, she married pro tennis player Martina Navratilova who has won 18 Grand Slam singles titles throughout her career.
"I first want to say it's about time!" Lemigova told E! News of her history-making casting. "I want to normalize how we live and show that love has no gender. We are a very loving family with big and unique personalities."
"I cannot wait to show the world that a same-sex marriage is just like any other marriage," she added. "We will share our joy, fun, and our daily life."
Former “Real Housewives of Orange County” star Braunwyn Windham-Burke came out as a lesbian last year during an interview with the LGBTQ+ media monitoring organization GLAAD.
More recently, fellow former Orange County housewife Elizabeth Lyn Vargas earlier this year said she identified as bisexual, and Noella Bergener, a newcomer on the upcoming season of “Real Housewives of Orange County,” shares in a trailer that she is also bisexual.
Andy Cohen, executive producer of the show previously agreed that the franchise lacked LGBTQ+ representation since its start in 2006.
In a podcast interview with Going to Bed With Garcelle, hosted by RHOBH star Garcelle Beauvais, Cohen said that Bravo “almost cast several lesbians” throughout the franchise’s years and even considered casting a gay man. However, he explained that they “wound up just not doing it.”
Watch the full trailer below to see all the drama coming to your screens this season!
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