Porsha Williams is standing by the story that she is not a home wrecker after marrying Simon Guobadia. She is equally insistent that her temporary departure from reality TV had nothing to do with hiding her relationship.
“I wasn’t running away,” she told People in a new interview amid her return to TV on “The Real Housewives Ultimate Girl Trip.” “And I don’t think any of my followers who truly knew me would believe that I would run away from the show for that.”
Last November, Simon, 57, and Williams, 41, were married in Atlanta after getting engaged in May 2021. Two years ago, “Real Housewives of Atlanta” viewers watched as Williams appeared to meet Simon for the first time during season 13, while he was still married to “friend of the show” Falynn Guobadia.
At the time, Williams was still with her then-fiancé, Dennis McKinley. The two share a daughter, Pilar Jhena’ McKinley. “I had already decided that it was time for me to step away at least six months before I told any of the executives what I was going to do — and long before I even met my now-husband,” she added.
The former Dish Nation personality also said that turning 40 was a catalyst for her decision to leave the franchise. “I was hitting my 10-year mark on the show, and I really just had to reassess where I was and what I wanted totally out of my life. So that’s where that decision came from,” claimed Williams.
But despite how things played in front of the camera, the former peach holder claims she did not interfere with the businessman’s marriage to Falynn.
“What actually happened is I’m on a show and they tell me, ‘We’re going to bring in a new wife.’ When I met her and her husband, I didn’t really place him at the moment, but I knew him already,” she told the publication. “Fast forward, it just didn’t work out for her and she left.”
In early 2021, it was confirmed that Simon had filed for divorce after two years of marriage. He claimed that Falynn had an affair with Jaylan Banks. Their divorce was finalized that July. The following month, Faylynn, 34, announced she and Banks were expecting their first child.
Now, with the spotlight back on her, the “Pursuit of Porsha” author is again defending her relationship and its controversial beginnings. During an episode of the girls trip, she attempted to again clear up speculation about the timeline of her courtship with Simon when questioned by Candiace Dillard.
She claimed they began communicating soon after the news of his divorce filing broke, “I hit him in the DMs like, ‘I’m praying for y’all. Hope your’e good,’” she said.
“So he hit me back like, ‘Yeah, I’m good,’” said the GoNaked Hair founder. She explained that she then accepted a proposition to meet with Simon, but with one stipulation. “Before I see you, I need you to email me your divorce papers.”
When another “RHUGT” cast member suggested that Williams was doing her due diligence to ensure she was not interfering with Simon and Falynn’s dealings, she adamantly agreed. “I’m a public figure, and I don’t want to represent that. So she [Faylnn] signed it. It was a done deal, but it was not finalized. It was just literally sitting on the judge’s desk,” she recalled.
While Porsha is sticking to the relationship’s origin story being unproblematic, fans are having a hard time accepting her version of things. Some of the online banter includes:
“I love Porsha but we all know the truth behind her and her husband she was screwing simon way before he was divorced. I wish she went about it differently or just waited a month.”
“Porsha can’t even handle Candiace’s softball questions on the Simon situation. There’s no way she could’ve faced Kenya which is why her a— left the show – glad I was proven right.”
“Porsha gonna stand 10 toes down that Simon was free.”
Regardless of what fans believe to be true, Williams recently told The Wrap that a permanent return to reality TV would only happen if she is involved in authentic storylines. “I don’t want anything made up around me. I can’t take it, because where I am, I’m just too straightforward to even deal with it,” said the popular reality star.
As for Simon, she declared that he is her “forever man” and that she would not being getting married again — she was previously married to former NFL player Kordell Stewart. In her case, it seems second time may be the charm.
