Inside the RHOBH marriage curse that's seen half the show's stars get divorced amid scandal

While news of Teddi Mellencamp's alleged affair with her married horse trainer is dominating the headlines, it's far from the first shock split to come out of The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.

Across the show's fourteen seasons, almost half of the cast have split or divorced after splashing their marriages on the small screen.

RHOBH first premiered on Bravo back in 2010 with Lisa Vanderpump, Adrienne Maloof, Camille Grammer, and sisters Kim and Kyle Richards. 

Since then, Lisa is the only one to maintain her marriage to husband of 42 years, Ken Todd.

The glamorous restaurateur, 64, even renewed her wedding vows to Ken on the show's third season back in 2013.

While cast member Kim Richards was already single and divorced when the show started, her relationship with ex-boyfriend Ken Blumenfeld imploded during her time on the series.

Since season one, countless marriages would go on to end as new cast members joined and old ones departed. 

However, a few strong couples were able to avoid the RHOBH curse, including Lisa Rinna and Harry Hamlin, Eileen Davidson and Vince Van Patten, and Crystal and Rob Minkoff.

Taylor and Russell Armstrong

Taylor and Russell Armstrong were the second couple to part ways after the show premiered.

While their marriage issues were apparent during season one, things were worse than anybody could have imagined when it was discovered that Russell had been physically abusing Taylor behind the scenes. 

Taylor filed for divorce in July 2011, and just one month later, Russell committed suicide. 

She later found love with her former attorney John Bluher and the couple tied the knot in 2014.

 'I think if it wouldn’t have been someone that I trust so much because of everything I went through, I don’t think I would've ever been in a relationship again,' she told Us Weekly of her relationship with John.

'That’s why I believe I’m married now because I would’ve never trusted anyone again,' she continued.

'After all the lies that were built in my previous relationship, having someone that just stood by me — even though we couldn’t stand each other for a while — it was the reason that I trust him so much, and we became best friends.'

Camille and Kelsey Grammer

Season one also saw the demise of Camille Grammer's 14-year marriage to Frasier star Kelsey Grammer.

During filming, Kelsey was based in New York working on a play, while Camille was in Beverly Hills working on the show. 

According to Camille, Kelsey was having an affair with his now-wife Kayte Walsh during this time.

Kayte admitted to the affair in an interview with Oprah's Next Chapter in 2012.

'I'm not proud of the way we started out because he was in a marriage. I'm sorry. I have so many emotions. But you know, I fell in love. I don't know how to word it, I don't know how to put it into words,' she said.

While Kelsey has rarely addressed Camille in the media, he did make some snide comments about his ex in a 2019 interview and said that it was 'pathetic' how much his ex-wife talked about him. 

He added that their marriage was 'tiresome' and had been filled with divorce talks for almost a decade before they finally called it quits.

Adrienne Maloof and Paul Nassif

Adrienne Maloof and Paul Nassif were the next couple to call it quits after viewers watched the pair bicker incessantly with each other over the course of three seasons.

They finally split by the end of season three in 2012, and Adrienne skipped the reunion that year so she could avoid answering questions about her personal life - which led to her being sacked from the series. 

Their divorce turned nasty but they were able to settle it by the end of 2012 and move on with new partners. 

Adrienne enjoyed flings with toy boys like Sean Stewart and Jacob Busch, while Paul married Brittany Pattakos in 2019. 

Yolanda Hadid and David Foster 

Yolanda Hadid and David Foster divorced after just four years of marriage, although the couple had been together for almost a decade.

Their love story was a big part of Yolanda's storyline on RHOBH, with the Dutch model often fawning over her beau. 

At one point, Yolanda even recorded a romantic music video called 'I Love You' dedicated to her hitmaker husband.

Sadly, their relationship imploded in 2016 after Yolanda suffered a lengthy and dramatic battle with Lyme disease. 

They finalized their divorce in 2017, with David going on to marry singer and actress Katherine McPhee. 

Carlton and David Gebbia 

One-season wonder Carlton Gebbia is best known for being the first Real Housewife that also identified as a witch.

Her steamy marriage to husband David was featured in season four of the series, with the couple bragging about their hot and heavy marriage - which included owning a sex dungeon in their mansion. 

Carlton left the show in 2014 and the couple split in 2016, before finalizing their divorce a year later after 20 years of marriage.

Erika Jayne and Tom Girardi 

One of the most jaw-dropping splits in RHOBH history belongs to Erika Jayne and Tom Girardi.

While viewers weren't surprised to see the couple's 21-year marriage implode given their 33-year age difference, it was the details around their split that sent shockwaves through the fandom. 

Not only was Tom accused of being a serial cheater, the famed attorney was also charged with four counts of wire fraud, including embezzling millions from his former clients. 

The couple officially split in 2020 and Erika is dating again while Tom is awaiting sentencing.

Kyle Richards and Mauricio Umansky 

Kyle Richards, who has starred on RHOBH since the show's inception, announced her separation from Mauricio Umansky in July 2023 after 27 years of marriage.

Despite their split, the couple have not filed for divorce yet.

'I don’t know what the future holds right now with Mauricio and me,' Kyle told Us Weekly in October.

'We love each other. So that part is easy. What’s not easy is figuring out what’s next. We’re not divorced; he doesn’t live here, but we’re still figuring things out,' she continued.

'On the show, people felt they were owed answers and thought I was withholding stuff — but I’m figuring it out myself.'

Kyle has been swept up in rumors of a lesbian romance with country singer Morgan Wade since her split from Mauricio.

She and the singer have been nearly inseparable over the last year, and they even went as far as get matching heart tattoos and wear matching rings.

The lady friends poked fun at the romance rumors in August 2023, when Kyle starred in Morgan's steamy music video for her song Fall In Love With Me.

The reality star played a love interest to the country crooner, and the two women even shared a steamy kiss.

But the two haven't been seen together much in recent months.

While speaking to People, Kyle said that Morgan is 'not signed up to be on the [RHOBH]' and 'doesn’t want to be part of the show.'

Dorit and Paul Kemsley

Meanwhile, Kyle's former best friend Dorit Kemsley is also caught up in marriage woes of her own.

Dorit and Paul 'PK' Kemsley, who wed in 2015, confirmed in May that they were taking time apart after nine years of marriage. 

'We as a couple have been subject to a lot of speculation about our marriage. We have had our struggles over the last few years and continue to work through them as two people who love each other and share two amazing children together,' they said in a statement at the time.

'To safeguard our deep friendship and maintain a harmonious environment for our children we have made the mutual and difficult decision to take some time apart and reevaluate our relationship while we prioritize our children,' it continued.

'We appreciate your love and support while we continue to do the work necessary throughout this journey.'

While it's unclear what exactly caused issues in their marriage, Dorit previously said that PK had been drinking too much which was affecting their communication. 

The pair spent Halloween together as a family, leading fans to think that they may have quietly reconciled. 

Marisa and David Zanuck 

Even some of RHOBH's lesser known cast members have been struck by the divorce curse. 

Marisa Zanuck, who appeared in a supporting role during season three of the series, divorced her movie producer husband Dean shortly after her brief stint on the show.

She often complained about Dean during her one season on RHOBH and later admitted that he never even wanted them to be on the show in the first place. 

Since their divorce, Marisa has continued her successful real estate career, even going into business with fellow Bravo star Ryan Serhant at one point. 

Teddi Mellencamp and Edwin Arroyave 

It comes as DailyMail.com broke the news that Teddi Mellencamp's alleged affair with her married horse trainer was the catalyst behind her divorce from her husband of 13-years, Edwin Arroyave.

According to a source, The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum, 43, and her German-born horse trainer Simon Schröeder had a months-long love affair behind their spouses' backs.

Making matters worse, the pair were allegedly together in Florida while Schröeder's pregnant wife Karli Postel was giving birth to their second child in California.

The source claims that Teddi decided to file for divorce once she got caught in the affair.

Teddi has been receiving advice from her best friend and former co-star Kyle on her marriage woes.

Kyle, 55, told E! News about her friend's split: 'I'm sad. I see two people that I know once really loved each other very much—and I'm sure still do—and have this beautiful family and you see them go through something like this.' 

She continued: 'I feel like we're just getting way too comfortable seeing this now in our group.'

'Unfortunately, we've had an education in this,' Kyle told the outlet, 'so I can help guide her a little bit should she need it.' 

Teddi, who is the daughter of rock musician John Mellencamp, filed for divorce from Arroyave after 13 years of marriage last week.

The couple are parents to Slate, 12, Cruz, 10, and Dove, four.

'It's difficult no matter what, but she is a strong girl,' she said. 'It's hard when you have kids no matter what their age is.'

'I've learned that through my situation too,' she continued. 'Yes, it's hard when they're little, but you can easily hide things from them too.

'And when they're older, it's a whole other different set of problems, having their fantasy life ripped out from under their feet.'