Could Selling Sunset survive without Chrishell Stause?

Since the first moments of episode 1, she’s been arguably the central star of the show, providing a stable force to latch on to as multi-million dollar houses came second best to inter-office scandals involving the revolving door of beautiful women filling the office desks.

But fast forward to the newly-released season 8, and Chrishell has made it clear she’s ready to quit the show – with Emma Hernan and Chelsea Lazkani potentially even going with her.

The drama of season 8 started before the episodes even aired, with Chrishell publicly raging about allegations contained within the instalments a week before the public could see them.

In no uncertain terms, Chrishell slammed the production company and co-stars Mary Fitzgerald, Nicole Young and Bre Tiesi for their part in the scandals that unfolded during the latest episodes.

Among them, Nicole was seen insinuating Emma had been sleeping with a married man, while Bre - in their eyes at least - orchestrated scenes that brought newcomer Amanda Lynn into the fold.

Amanda - who has come under fire for unearthed discriminatory posts on X (formerly Twitter) - phoned Bre and later met with her on-camera to share allegations of Chelsea's now-estranged husband Jeff Lazkani having an affair.

Bre wrestled with the information, before having a one-to-one with Chelsea to inform her of what she’d heard.

Chrishell proved a rock for both the ladies – a mark of how far they’d come considering Chelsea was initially brought on the show to antagonise her – and took to Instagram about Nicole’s comments, supporting Chelsea’s slamming of Bre in the process.

Among the many messages Chrishell posted, she branded Nicole ‘trash’ and said: “I will NEVER work on a show with her on it again. I would rather be sued.”

She later claimed the production company “blindsided” Emma with Nicole’s allegations, without giving her the opportunity on the show to respond.

Since the release of season 8, Chrishell has doubled down on her comments, saying to Extra TV: "I will never work in a show with [Nicole] again. After eight seasons and seeing someone systematically try to plot against several people, why are we giving her more airtime? When somebody's just hungry for camera time and lies, the audience is over it."

Viewers of the show will know there is no love lost between Chrishell and Nicole, with the pair viciously clashing during seasons 6 and 7.

Nicole grew frustrated with Chrishell getting credit for a house sale they both worked on, later suggesting she only got her listings because she was sleeping with boss Jason at the time.

Chrishell retaliated by accusing Nicole of being on drugs, which she vehemently denied. So really, their latest spat is not surprising.

But still, is this really the end for Chrishell? After all, at this point in time, she is Selling Sunset’s jewel in the crown, and what’s a series without its leading lady?

There’s been a shift in the show’s dynamic over the last few seasons. If we were to pinpoint it, season 5 – and the exit of the beloved glamorous antagonist Christine Quinn – left Selling Sunset scrambling to recover.

Christine was the yin to Chrishell’s yang. While Chrishell did her best to try to keep everyone happy, often to her own detriment, Christine seemed to thrive on chaos, resulting in clashes and fights with numerous cast members. Her unceremonious exit caused undeniable cracks in Selling Sunset’s foundations, especially with fans.

Christine’s exit pushed Chrishell even more to the forefront of the series, and with it came a lot more soul-baring on her part. On screen, viewers watched her marriage to This Is Us’s Justin Hartley break down, her attempts to start a family hitting multiple roadblocks and, in season 6, her year-long romance with Oppenheim Group boss Jason come and go.

It’s not unfair to say it became kind of obvious Chrishell was beginning to check out of the pressures of the series. This was only amplified further in 2022, when she announced her new relationship with Australian non-binary musician G-Flip.

The couple have since got married and Chrishell has settled, looking for little more than some peace in her life and herself. But with that peace comes a lack of patience to continue being involved in drama.

To the annoyance of others around her, Chrishell’s new priority in life was G-Flip, touring and seeing the world with them, and splitting her time between Los Angeles and her now-spouse’s native Australia. Acting work started picking up again, even landing her a guest spot on Aussie soap Neighbours, which films in Melbourne and resulted in her spending more time away from the brokerage and friendship group.

The loving and supportive relationship gave Chrishell the backbone to start refusing filming scenes, particularly situations she knew would lead to arguments. She simply didn’t have time for it anymore.

In fact, it seems Selling Sunset and the people involved are one of the few things dragging her down, and it’s never been more obvious than in season 8, which may have proved her breaking point.

Chrishell came close to swerving close pal Amanza’s birthday party to avoid a run-in with Amanza’s stylist, who branded her a “fake lesbian” and accused G-Flip of “using Chrishell for a green card”. Naturally, this left Chrishell furious, upset, and unwilling to be near him.

Despite these personal attacks, Amanza downplayed Chrishell’s frustrations and stood by her team member because “he works with her for free”.

While on the series Chrishell’s attempts at playing peacekeeper between Chelsea and Bre seemed to make a few strides, time between filming and release has clearly seen that friendship sour.

But her bond with Emma and Chelsea has done nothing but grow, and with the three of them as a powerful unit within the Oppenheim Group and the framework of Selling Sunset, it seems something has to give and quickly.

At this point, there’s nothing keeping her at the Oppenheim Group apart from a nostalgic loyalty to Brett and Jason Oppenheim, a so-so friendship with their second-in-command Mary, as well as Emma and Chelsea. So if they’re gone, why would she stick around?

We have to face the idea that Chrishell may be walking her Louboutins out the office, never to return.

Time will tell if she sticks to her guns and leaves the series if Bre, Amanda and Nicole continue to remain on the show, but right now it genuinely looks like she means it.

The problem is it doesn’t look like anyone else realises how fundamental a role Chrishell plays in Selling Sunset’s success. Without the OG cast member – our looking glass and one of the last remaining consistencies strains of the series – the show becomes untethered.

Brett, Jason, Chrishell and Mary are the only four stars to be in every series. Brett and Jason are supporting players in the story, and Mary largely tries to keep out of trouble. Chrishell’s the driving force, whether other cast members want to admit it or not.

So if she does quit, she could swipe the entire foundation of the series out from under the Netflix smash, making it incredibly difficult to carry on.

This truly could be the closing offer on the series.

Selling Sunset seasons 1-7 are streaming now on Netflix. Sign up for Netflix from £4.99 a month. Netflix is also available on Sky Glass and Virgin Media Stream.

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