RHONY rumors: Will Real Housewives really address its diversity problem?

Rumor has it Bravo wants to improve representation on RHONY to better resemble the real New York City.

Season 9 is not quite over — we’ve got more of the “shitshow” in Mexico to see — but the Real Housewives of New York City reunion is officially in the can, as they say, and that means it’s time for casting speculation. As Page Six reports, multiple insiders believe Bravo will make an effort to add diversity to the cast this offseason to better reflect the city the women live in.

According to Page Six, one insider said, “After nine seasons, the show’s been very white, and in the most diverse, melting pot of a city.”

Another added, “New York is such a diverse city. The show should definitely reflect that.”

Forever-star of the show, Bethenny Frankel independently articulated her support for the effort, saying:

"I would like to see some younger cast members. I’d like to see an African-American woman on the show. I suggested someone who didn’t work out. There are really no Jewish women in the cast. There are also no Asian, Latino or gay women on the show. I’d like it to represent New York more."

However, the report also suggests the Bravo team is looking for a — singular — minority cast member, which is a start but doesn’t exactly move the needle as far as making the show resemble New York City. (There’s also the complicated matter that the more women they choose to add, the more with whom they must part ways.)

Diversity in the Real Housewives franchise has always been, for lack of a better word, segregated. RHONY, Real Housewives of Beverly Hills and Real Housewives of Orange County have been mostly, if not completely, white. (RHOC did add a Persian cast member for season 12.) Real Housewives of Atlanta and Real Housewives of Potomac are both mostly black. Asian women and Latina women have been few and far between on the show and we haven’t really seen any representation for LGBTQ housewives either.  (If anything, intimation of lesbian relationships — “the lady pond” as Andy Cohen problematically refers to it — is used as juicy rumor fodder, not in serious consideration.)

Moreover, “housewives” as a categorization has almost no real meaning on the shows. The women’s marital statuses oscillate wildly across seasons and within franchises and most of the women work in some capacity.

Still, if Page Six is to be believed — that unless you’re famous, you need to be friends with someone on the show to get cast — it could explain the whiteness of franchises. In 2014, the Washington Post reported that three quarters of white people don’t have any non-white friends. Which is to say, like representation in any realm, maybe the producers of Real Housewives need to try a little harder in their casting searches.

Next: Ramona Singer 'not proud' of her behavior in Mexico

Catch the current cast of Real Housewives of New York City Wednesday at 9 / 8 central on Bravo and let us know who you want to see on RHONY next season in the comments below.