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Real Housewives of Atlanta star Porsha Williams can finally exhale as her divorce from Simon Guobadia is now finalized. Now, the reality star and Go Naked Hair founder is opening up in a new interview about what went wrong in her marriage, the emotional toll the divorce has taken, and how she learned of Simon being detained by ICE.
Porsha, 44, filed for divorce from Simon, 61, in February 2024. Notably, this announcement came within weeks of her confirming her return to RHOA for season 16.
Porsha recently sat down for a transparent interview with PEOPLE. She started by referencing the premiere episode of RHOA, where she stated that Simon had become a different person than the one she married, while also acknowledging that people often change in relationships.
She then said, “But I still thought I was grasping and still with the person that I knew and loved, my person. At the end of the day, I felt like, and some of me still feels like, Simon was my person.”
Regarding how she came to realize the marriage wasn’t built to last, Porsha revealed, “I came to the realization when we were having pretty much our first really drag out argument. There was some paperwork that needed to be handled, and I wanted to bring in some attorneys to represent me, and that was frowned upon, and he, I don’t know, it was a look.”
She then described the look Simon gave her as “dark.” She added, “You’re not looking at the same person who loved you before. I’ll never forget. I looked at him, and it wasn’t really what he said, it was how I felt because I really operate off of energy.” Porsha went on to say this is when she knew he was “pretty much checked out of the relationship.”
“I didn’t know I was going to divorce him in that moment, but I knew we had probably reached a point of no return,” Porsha added. She then called the end of their relationship “prettying up the ugly.”
From there, she discussed actually filing for divorce. According to Porsha, “I would think that he would feel like it was a blindside for him. He was out of the country, and I had begged for him not to go out the country. I felt it wasn’t safe for him to be traveling anymore when I got some information.”
She also said she approached their divorce as a businesswoman, and she wanted to protect herself and her daughter. However, Porsha stated that she had hoped that she and Simon could come together to “work something out.”
Regarding their prenup, she said, “I was very responsible. He was very responsible. Both of us were, and we were proud of our prenup. We felt like, ‘Okay, this is comfortable for us at our age, bringing together two big worlds.’”
She added that she knew she’d be okay financially because of their agreement. However, Porsha also explained, “But on the side of emotions, I was not prepared for going through this divorce. I really think I miscalculated how much I cared for my husband. It was a tough decision.”
From there, she discussed the two things about her marriage that she learned were untrue. Porsha said, “I just loved him and I trusted him. Those two things are big factors that really hurt in the divorce. The fact that I loved him so much, I trusted him so much, and I felt safe with him.”
She went on, “At the end, those were the two things that I lost in the relationship. Those were the two things that I knew weren’t true. I couldn’t trust him, and I wasn’t safe with him.” Still, Porsha does not think Simon lied about loving her.
In talking about the demise of their relationship, she said, “I do believe there were some old habits. Some desires that he had, and there were some things he wanted to accomplish outside of family. I possibly think he chose those things over me, over us.”
Later in the interview, Porsha discussed learning that Simon had been detained. Notably, it was around one of their court hearings for their divorce. She explained, “For some reason, one of our last dates, he fought for it to be in person, and I didn’t understand that, so I fought it. I actually had my attorneys write the court and object.”
She continued this line of conversation, saying, “I got denied, and we both had to be in person. So, I found out, like everyone else, that he had been taken in for questioning. Emotionally, I mean, I hate that for him. I don’t want anything bad to happen to Simon.”
The RHOA star also discussed the process of healing from the divorce. According to Porsha, “What this healing process has been like, I swear, it’s been like super highs and super lows. In the beginning, I was just really in a whirlwind of wondering, ‘Did I do the right thing? What has happened? Who is he really? Who am I really? Is it my fault?’”
She continued, “I don’t break up with someone and 100% blame them. I looked for where I can be accountable to soothe myself and have some truth.” Porsha said she has been reflecting on their marriage while also being okay with it now ending. She also credited her mother and sister for their help.
Porsha then said the process of healing from this divorce was “much shorter” than her first. However, she also added, “I do not know who is on Housewives. I don’t know who she is. We’ll figure that out at reunion. I have to speak for her at reunion, and I will. I will take all accountability.”
Toward the end, Porsha said that despite having gone through a divorce, she is at peace with how things turned out.
Fans can watch Porsha on new episodes of RHOA on Sunday nights.