The 15 Worst Boyfriends And Husbands In The Real Housewives Universe

The following article includes allegations of domestic abuse.

We love most of the women who have appeared on the "Real Housewives" franchise over the years, and we could list off a number of their collective strengths. But picking good men? That is not typically one of them. Sure, there are some solid "Real Housewives" men — Russell Abraira, Rob Minkhoff, or the late Bobby Zarin, for example. But the good ones are overshadowed by arrogant, annoying, lazy, or flat-out toxic ones. We have seen emotional abuse, violent tempers, cheating, and even physical abuse from far too many "Real Housewives" husbands and boyfriends.

Some "Real Housewives" cast members have such bad pickers that it is difficult to narrow down the all-time worst househusband or boyfriends, but the men on this list are at the bottom of the barrel. We did not include any men who, like Noella Bergener's husband "Sweet James," were discussed but never appeared on the show, nor anyone who is deceased, like Taylor Armstrong's ex, Russell. And since the focus was specifically on how the men treated their wives, a few bad dudes (like Tom Girardi, who allegedly stole money from orphans and widows) are not on the list. Even then, some doozies like Josh Taekman, Bill Aydin, Tom D'Agostino, and Kelsey Grammer, had to be left off to accommodate the absolute worst men on the show. Here are the 15 worst boyfriends and husbands in the "Real Housewives" universe.

"Real Housewife of Potomac" star Ashley Darby has been on the show since the beginning, and many have grown to love her over the last seven seasons. She separated from her husband Michael in 2022, but it is unclear (even to her castmates) if the divorce was ever finalized. Michael is very much still in Ashley's life, not only because they share two young sons, but also because they bought a home together — post-split. It made no sense to anyone on "RHOP," and viewers don't get it either. Then again, many don't understand the appeal of Michael in the first place. For starters, he has never seemed to care for his wife all that much. We have seen him gush over fellow househusband Juan Dixon, but he doesn't tend to show that level of adoration for Ashley.

When the Darbys owned a restaurant, named Oz, their conversations about the business made it abundantly clear that Michael thought of his wife as a subordinate and not as an equal partner. And then there's the icky stuff. In 2019, a Bravo cameraman accused Michael of sexual assault — although the legal charges were later dismissed due to "insufficient evidence" (per People). To boot, scandalous footage of Michael in bed with a woman was leaked in 2020.

"Real Housewives of Orange County" star Vicki Gunvalson has said, on far too many occasions, that she never should have ended things with her second husband Donn. And honestly, we don't blame her considering the clunkers she has dated in the years since. The man who helped contribute to the demise of Gunvalson's 20-year marriage is widely regarded as one of the most despicable people ever to grace reality television, having faked cancer and even going so far as to forge medical records. "I divorced my husband for Brooks [Ayers] and it's the biggest regret I ever had," Vicki told an audience during a 2022 BravoCon panel (via People). "I will never, ever cheat again. It destroyed my family." 

Gunvalson dated Ayers for four years, and she was at one point accused of knowing he fabricated his non-Hodgkin's lymphoma diagnosis — which she has consistently denied. Horrible fake cancer performance aside, there are so many other reasons Ayers was the worst of the worst. For instance, Gunvalson's adult daughter, Briana Culbertson, accused Ayers of hitting on her at a party when she was pregnant. He has denied the story, but your credibility is kind of shot once you fake cancer on national television. Another strike against Ayers is his mooching. Gunvalson paid for Ayers to live a certain type of lifestyle and even loaned him money. In 2019, she was forced to sue him for fraud after she said that he failed to pay back nearly $185,000.

Former baseball player Jim Edmonds is on marriage number four, but it is his third one, to "Real Housewives of Orange County" alum Meghan King, that reality TV fans care about. King was married to Edmonds when she became a cast member on "RHOC" and though she left with her marriage intact, the couple divorced soon after. No one was surprised by the breakup because it was obvious throughout their three seasons (from 2015 to 2017) that Edmonds did not like his wife in the slightest. 

In a YouTube series where she rewatched episodes, King admitted that a scene of her husband completely ignoring her was hard to stomach. "So rude. So embarrassing," she said in the video (via Page Six). We have to agree with her because few Househusbands have shown such little interest in their wives — Edmonds was barely even present throughout the couple's IVF journey.

Things have gotten incredibly messy and there have been many public insults slung since the divorce, but it is what Edmonds did during the marriage that really scored him a spot on this list. Aside from disrespecting his wife on a continual basis, he has also been accused of cheating with their nanny. It is unclear if that happened, but it was confirmed that he was caught sending nude selfies to a woman while King was about to give birth to their twins. "It was just a weak moment," he told TMZ Sports. A weak moment, or a weak man? That's debatable.

Not only is Jim Marchese a crappy husband, but he just might be one of the worst humans ever to appear on the "Real Housewives" franchise. At the very least, he is one of the most hated men to have been featured. If you do not believe it, just head to Reddit, where there is no shortage of threads about his behavior and personality. Never have we been more thankful that a "Housewife" lasted only one season, because Amber Marchese was no prize either. And when you add in Jim, it was almost too much to bear, even for "Real Housewives of New Jersey," which is one of the franchise's most aggressive series.

Aside from being rude to virtually every person he came into contact with on Season 6 of "RHONJ," he even made up a rumor about another Househusband sleeping with his mother-in-law. Plus, Jim does not treat Amber respectfully. He puts her down so much that he was even called out for it when the couple appeared on "Marriage Bootcamp." Most disgustingly, he blamed her for getting breast cancer. He also stopped paying his son's college tuition after he came out of the closet. In 2016, Jim was arrested on charges of domestic violence after he was observed choking Amber on a flight. Both of them denied it happened, but it is hard not to believe Virgin Airlines staff, who also claimed Jim threatened Amber's life. 

Shannon Storms Beador's negativity, selfishness, and lack of self-reflection have been issues for her fellow cast members, and they have been issues for many viewers as well. Considering that, it is entirely probable that these things have also impacted her relationships, including her marriage. Still, David Beador was a bad husband and possibly part of the reason Storms Beador is the difficult person she is today. We never saw him treat her well, except for perhaps that time he fished a lost piece of a plastic enema out of her butt. In general, though, Beador showed about as much emotion as the robot from "The Terminator" and never seemed to have anything behind the eyes besides pure hatred. 

Storms Beador denied her ex-husband was abusive when co-star and close friend Vicki Gunvalson claimed to have text messages and photos proving it (during the Season 11 reunion). However, given that Beador was reportedly arrested for assault and battery in 2003, it seems likely she was being untruthful. Though she may not want to open up about any physical abuse, Storms Beador was extremely transparent about other issues in her marriage, including Beador's long-term affair. The couple tried to make things work after the affair came out, but the "RHOC" star ultimately realized she was the only one who was invested. "You need two people to make a marriage work, and that just wasn't happening in our relationship," Storms Beador said upon their 2017 separation (via E! News).

Lenny Hochstein is regarded as such a bad husband that he even won Vulture's bracket of the all-time worst Househusbands across any franchise. The plastic surgeon was first featured on "Real Housewives of Miami" in 2012, when his wife Lisa joined the show as a Season 2 cast member. Lenny was condescending and disrespectful toward Lisa, but there were no major hints of what was to come. Because "RHOM" was canceled after the next season, the couple faded from the public eye for almost a decade, until the show was revived by Peacock in 2022. By the time of the show's return, the Hochsteins — who now have two children — had been married nearly a decade and a half.

Lisa was a stay-at-home wife and mother and Lenny expected her to do everything related to domesticity, as if they were living in the 1940s. In fact, in a scene from Season 5, when the nanny called in sick, he chose tennis over watching his own children. Instead, he forced Lisa to try to find a babysitter while she was on a cast vacation. The biggest reason he is the worst, though, is his affair, which he at first denied in the press but was caught speaking about on a hot mic. Since then, he has blamed Lisa for cheating, repeatedly bashed her in the media, and allegedly cut her off financially. In May 2023, Lenny accused Lisa of verbally and physically assaulting him, but no arrests were made.

Kordell Stewart may have been a star football player in the NFL, but no one can say he was a star husband. Stewart was married to Porsha Williams when she made her "Real Housewives of Atlanta" debut, way back in Season 5, and he treated her terribly. He essentially wanted a Stepford Wife and controlled what Williams wore, how she acted, and where she went. She was a totally different person to the Williams who exists today. Viewers then saw a muted version of her that lacked confidence and was missing her hilarious vivaciousness. Williams and Stewart split in 2013, and even she has said she was not herself in those old episodes. "I had never seen or knew how I would come off to the public and so I was very critical of myself," she explained at 2019 BravoCon (via BravoTV). "And it wasn't until over the years, I started just letting the cameras see who I really was."

A whole new Williams emerged after she broke free from the shackles of her marriage, but the road there was rocky. Ever the coward, Stewart did not tell Williams he was divorcing her directly, with her instead discovering the news online. As Williams attempted to salvage things, Stewart acted like a true creep. He locked her out of their house, sent her stuff off for storage, and even tore up her wedding dress. His leaving was a blessing in disguise for Williams.