Kandi Burruss had fans seeing double on July 31 after the “Real Housewives of Atlanta” star uploaded a photo from her “girls night out,” which featured Kimberly Blackwell, a woman they deemed as resembling Nene Leakes.
The featured image includes Burruss’ “RHOA” co-star Shamea Morton, Carmon Cambrice, Jami Zeigler, and marketing agency owner Kimberly Blackwell.
In the initial photo, captioned “Girls night out!” Burruss and her guests are seen smiling as they appeared to enjoy their time at Pasha Restaurant and Bar in Atlanta.
As the photo became viral, many fans pointed out how they had to take a second glance because they thought Blackwell was Burruss’ former co-star Nene Leakes. Despite there being a multitude of Blackwell and Leakes comparisons, the reason behind it wasn’t fully specified other than people claiming it was a common mistake.
A couple of fans even suggested that a Leakes doppelgänger was allegedly hired due to the apparent low ratings of “RHOA” last season stemming from the OG housewife’s departure from the show.
“Thought that was Nene in the middle. Goodness“
“Chile they having Nene doppelganger on RHOA this season?”
“She looks Wayyyyy to Similar to Nene.”
“They Miss NeNe so Bad They Have Hired Look-a-like.”
Leakes announced she was leaving “RHOA” in October 2020 by sharing a YouTube video on her official channel, saying the cause was failed contract talks. A month following the initial announcement, Burruss shared during her appearance on “STEVE on Watch” how Leakes was a “great addition to the show.” The mother of three said, “She will be missed on the show, for sure. I’m not trying to take anything from her. She was a great addition to the show.”
She added while discussing Leakes’ initial reason behind leaving the franchise, “I think in negotiations, sometimes we get what we want and sometimes we don’t get what we want and … when we don’t get what we want, we have to make the decision on if we want to part ways, and I think [Nene] made that decision for herself.”
