In a candid panel at the Los Angeles Times Festival of Books, which took place April 18–19, 2026, actress and television personality Lisa Rinna sat down with Yvonne Villarreal to discuss her latest book and life after reality television. Rinna opened up about the cathartic, albeit unexpected, process of writing her new memoir. After meeting with potential ghostwriters via Zoom, she used the sessions to process the profound grief of losing her mother and the emotional toll of her final year on “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.”
Rinna spoke frankly about the stark contrast between her real identity and the heightened persona she adopted for Bravo. She described navigating her mother’s death in the public eye as a life-defining moment, noting how her initial reaction of rage surprised her and ultimately triggered unexpected backlash from the “Housewives” fan base. She compared the Bravo machine to the controlling Hollywood studio system of the 1930s, calling the network a “casino” where the house always wins.
Stepping away from that environment allowed Rinna to reclaim her authenticity, a transition highlighted by her acclaimed stint on Peacock’s “The Traitors.” Treating the competition simply as a game of “Mafia,” Rinna relished the opportunity to scheme and deceive purely for sport, free from the genuine interpersonal toxicity of her previous reality TV tenure.
Beyond television, Rinna discussed her unapologetic approach to finances and her hustler mentality—from her famous Depends commercial to her QVC boutique ventures. Now firmly in her “Renaissance” era, she is embracing new opportunities, including viral fashion week appearances and a return to acting with upcoming roles in Netflix’s “Running Point” and a new RuPaul film. Despite happily leaving the toxicity of “Housewives” behind, Rinna playfully revealed the one thing that could lure her back to the Bravo franchise: a cool ten million dollar paycheck.
