Denise Richards is inviting fans back into her unique life with her new Bravo series, Denise Richards & Her Wild Things. The actress, who rose to fame in the late ’90s with roles in Wild Things and The World is Not Enough, first broke into the reality television scene in the aughts with Denise Richards: It’s Complicated, which documented her life as she juggled motherhood and her career in the wake of her highly publicized divorce from fellow actor Charlie Sheen, the father of her two daughters Sami Sheen, 20, and Lola Sheen, 19.
The new series, which premieres tonight on Bravo, will follow Denise’s blended family with her husband Aaron Cameron, her two eldest daughters, her adopted daughter Eloise Richards, and their four Golden Retrievers. With the trailer teasing starry cameos from friends like Kathy Hilton and Tori Spelling, Richards also revealed that her ex-husband would be making an appearance at some point in the season.
“We do film with him,” she said during her visit to DECIDER’s studio last week. “You will see him, which is great.”
Lola, who takes the opportunity to open up about her newfound faith in the series, further talked about her dynamic with Charlie, telling DECIDER, “My relationship with him when I was 16 and 17, I did not have Jesus and my dad was the first person who really, really helped me navigate my emotional mental health struggles because he is logical.”
While the girls have spent their entire lives in the public eye, Denise is excited for the show to give finally them “their own voice” after years of living “in the shadow” of her and Charlie. Despite growing up in the Hollywood scene, Sami — who has been “wanting a reality show for a long time” — hopes viewers can see a different side to her famous family.
“I think people are really relieved to see that we’re all a bunch of weirdos and we’re just normal people who do normal things and we all have our own individual struggles,” she said.
The three women sat down with DECIDER to talk all about their new show, including Sami and Denise’s OnlyFans pages, Lola’s faith, and why they decided to share their lives with the world once again. Check out the full interview below.
DECIDER: Denise, your life lends itself so well to reality TV. What made you want to share your life and your family with audiences once again?
DENISE RICHARDS: After Housewives, Alex Baskin approached me about doing a family reality show and I went to the girls. They’ve always lived in the shadow of me and Charlie [so I also thought] it would be such a great opportunity for them to have their own voice and be their own person and to have that platform to do that. And so we just we decided that this would be fun to do.
Sami and Lola, were you familiar with your mom’s previous reality TV show endeavors? How much do you remember of Denise Richards: It’s Complicated?
LOLA SHEEN: I don’t remember anything because I think I was so young.
DENISE: They started [at] two and three years old and three and four, they turned. Yeah, they were really little.
SAMI SHEEN: I have very vague memories of filming it. But yeah, I’ll watch clips of it here and there and I have no memory of any of it.
LOLA: The clips I’ve seen are really sweet to look back on because I was so young.
DENISE: It’s so nice to have that.
I bet! They’re like home videos. What about Real Housewives of Beverly Hills or Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test? Did you guys have any thoughts on those?
DENISE: They didn’t want me to do Special Forces. They were actually upset with me that I decided to do it. They were afraid I was going to get really hurt.
SAMI: I thought she was gonna die.
LOLA: I did, too.
DENISE: They thought it was too dangerous.
SAMI: It’s really hard to see your mom go through torture. So I didn’t want her doing it.
DENISE: I don’t think they even saw it.
SAMI: Housewives, I’ve never — I mean, I’ve seen a couple of your episodes.
DENISE: We just fight on that show.
We were big fans of Denise Richards: It’s Complicated so I have to ask — will your dad Irving be making an appearance on your new show? How’s he doing? What does it think of all this?
DENISE: Oh, my dad is so supportive. Everyone loved Irv on It’s Complicated. We did film with my dad. So he’s definitely very much a part of our life and very close to the girls. He’s the best grandpa ever.
LOLA: He really is.
SAMI: Yeah, he’s so sweet.
Denise, I know Aaron didn’t have the greatest experience with The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. He even goes so far to say he “cut” those women from his mind.
DENISE: He was joking about a lot of it. No, he enjoyed filming it, too. For the most part, I had so much fun. I made some good girl friends off of that show, too. Some friends, not so much. But overall, I’m glad I did it. I would do it again. And I really enjoyed the experience, even though there were some challenging moments. But that’s OK.
Did Aaron need any convincing to go back on reality TV?
DENISE: No. He’s so supportive of everything that I do and it’s something that he wanted. We wanted mainly to make sure that the girls were really wanting to do the show. We didn’t force them. We didn’t want to push them into doing it. Everyone had to be on board and be really excited. Sami was very excited.
SAMI: Yes. I’ve been wanting a reality show for so long. I think I manifested this on accident.
Lola, were you not as ready to jump into the reality TV world?
LOLA: Reality has never been my thing. It’s funny, like, things in the industry, I’ve always wanted to kind of steer away from just because it was, like, so my face my whole life. But I don’t know, I had to take a little bit of convincing. It took a lot of time with me asking God what I should do. But yeah.
That kind of leads me into my next question. Lola, you talk very openly about your faith on the show, which is really beautiful to watch. What’s it been like to share this very important part of your life with others?
LOLA: It is the most humbling experience for me because I think when I found Jesus — it was the first thing that was easy for me to do is talk about Him. Some people have a harder time, and I think He sort of used me as a light to encourage people who are Christians and who do follow Jesus, that it’s okay to talk about Him and that he always defends you. And so I always say sometimes it’s nerve-wracking because people who don’t know Jesus can sort of be judgmental. But I know that Jesus was persecuted here first. And so he said that we would also be persecuted. And so, the experience of sharing his light and receiving a little bit of hate, I’m like, it’s OK. Because it’s like a suffer for Christ, you know what I mean?
Absolutely. And don’t listen to the haters because they will always have something to say no matter what you do. Denise, I’m sure you understand that after many years in this industry.
DENISE: Yes. Definitely. That was one of the things I was concerned about as their mom being out there when now it’s them out there. You open yourself up to being exposed and you just have to ignore the hate and just live your life and be you. And it’s not an easy thing to do. I wish I had the confidence and the courage that these girls have when I was their age because I was always such a people pleaser and worried what people would think. And I’m glad that the girls are able to use their voice and be who they are.
Well, they have a good role model to look up to!
DENISE: Oh, thank you. It took me a long time though.
Sami, you said you were initially angry when your mom first made an OnlyFans. How were you able to get past that shock? Have you since embraced your mother’s side gig?
DENISE: Yeah, it’s not that I was angry because I’m always so supportive of everything she does. I was just frustrated that she started it really soon after I started mine. But I don’t know. It’s like we’ve been doing it for so long now that we kind of have our own fanbases and I’m happy that you’re still doing it. We don’t look at each other’s pages or anything. I don’t know what she’s even posting on there, but yeah, I’m not upset about it.
Sami and Lola, your relationship is a bit rocky in Episode 1. What can you tease about your path to reconciliation throughout the season?
DENISE: I think people are going to have to watch.
SAMI: Yeah, people are going to have to watch the show. And as sisters, time apart really helps if you’re having a really bad fight, I think.
LOLA: Yeah, I think this is like one of the main things I’ve had to really, really trust the Lord in because it’s probably one of the biggest arguments we’ve been in. But I think that now that, you know, I don’t want to say what happens, but, you know, we’re OK now, obviously.
SAMI: For now. We don’t know about tomorrow. We don’t know about the next hour.
DENISE: They’re sisters, though.
LOLA: God really helped me navigate that time and just give it to Him. And He really answered that prayer.
SAMI: I think time heals all with everything.
I agree. Well, I’m so happy to see you guys are getting along now!
DENISE: I think this has been a wonderful bonding experience for them. Not only filming the show, but also this is their first time doing interviews and doing press and having people come see them and interview them. So they have each other because it’s the first time for both of them. So it’s been, I think, a great bonding experience that they’re able to do this together too.
What’s been the biggest piece of advice you’ve given them about going into this world?
DENISE: One of the biggest things is to be themselves and to ignore negativity. And when you see a bunch of comments [that are] positive and that one negative, we tend to focus on that one negative thing when we should be focusing on the positive people that support. Without fans, I wouldn’t have a job. So it’s nice to acknowledge the wonderful support that’s positive. That’s, I think, one of the biggest things I’ve tried to tell them.
Denise, let’s talk about that picnic in Malibu. Did you ever hear from the authorities about bringing a meat platter and plastic forks to the beach?
DENISE: No, I did not. Yeah, I was very surprised by the rules there.
I was really pleased to see Brooke Mueller show up to the family picnic. What’s your favorite thing about your friendship with Brooke?
DENISE: Brooke and I’ve obviously had a lot of ups and downs and throughout everything I’ve always wanted, you know, she’s the mother of the girls’ brothers. And I think it’s important. We have a crazy blended family and as much as we can keep it harmonious and positive and healthy that’s the best thing. Right now, we’re in a really good place. She’s in a good place. And so when there’s those moments, it’s great to be able to have that. She’s got a great heart. She’s a good person and I love that we’re able to have a friendship. We have a lot in common!
It must be a relief to be able to blend your families so easily together. What other activities do you do together?
DENISE: Well, it’s not always easy … We film whenever we’re doing family dinners or birthday parties or holidays. We try to [get together] as much as possible. With all the kids getting older — that’s the other thing that I loved about doing the show is because we’re filming our life. At the same time, it was great to also carve out more moments for us to be together because they are getting older and they do have their own lives too, so it’s nice for us to share that time.
Speaking of blended families, Lola you talk a bit in the show about how you vent to your dad and how he has a super logical way of thinking and getting you through things. Will we get to see more of his dynamic with you guys this season? Or will it all be from off-camera?
DENISE: You have to see the show! He does — we do film with him. Sorry, Lola’s just learning what we can reveal and not reveal.
LOLA: My relationship with him when I was 16 and 17, I did not have Jesus and my dad was the first person who really, really helped me navigate my emotional mental health struggles because he is logical. But on the show, I guess I can’t really say what we do.
DENISE: You’ll see him, I’ll say that. You will see him, which is great.
Denise, the first two episodes feature great conversations with your pals Camille Grammer and Tori Spelling, two other women whose private lives have been open to public scrutiny. Was it important for you to highlight your real-life friendships on your show? Maybe let the audience see a different side of them?
DENISE: Well, we’re filming our life and I’m very good friends with both Tori and Camille and I’m glad that we were able to film with them. Also with Kathy Hilton, I’ve become good friends with her after joining the Housewives. So I’m glad that they were able to film with us.
Sami and Lola, do you have any favorites among your mom’s famous friends? Or do you not see the whole “Hollywood” thing?
SAMI: Patrick [Muldoon] is my favorite.
LOLA: I was gonna say Pat. I love Pat so much.
SAMI: He’s like a 15-year-old boy that never grew up but did at the same time in the best way possible. He’s really funny. And I’ve said that to him. I won’t offend him.
DENISE: No, you won’t offend him. He’s been one of my best friends since I was a teenager. And he’s close to our families, close to my husband. But I think the girls don’t look at my famous friends as famous. They just look at them as mom’s friends.
Denise, I was really surprised to see Erika Jayne in the trailer. What can you tease about that conversation? Where do you stand with her now?
DENISE: You know, I really hit it off with Erika my first season on Housewives. Second season didn’t go the way the first one did. I really liked her and I felt like there was some unresolved stuff. And so I was glad that we were able to reconnect again.
Question for all three of you, are there any misconceptions about you or your family that you’re hoping this show can clear up?
LOLA: The only thing that comes to my mind is that I think sometimes people can view someone who’s in the public eye [like] they’re perfect or compare themselves. But for me, I just wanted to say I’m just a normal person and I’m not perfect at all. And I think that I just want to show people no matter where, like, if you’re in the public eye or not, you still struggle.
SAMI: Yeah, I think people are really relieved to see that we’re all a bunch of weirdos and we’re just normal people who do normal things and we all have our own individual struggles. And yeah, I think the biggest misconception is just that we’re like, I don’t even know —
DENISE: I don’t even know what misconceptions are out there. All I could say is the show, I think, is funny and has a lot of heart. And at the end of the day, I’m a mom who has a lot of the same challenges as other parents do as far as siblings not getting along or letting them grow up and be their own person. So I think that part will be very relatable. No matter what job we do, we still, as a mom or dad, you’re still dealing with a lot of the same emotions that many other families deal with.
This interview has been edited for length and clarity.
New episodes of Denise Richards & Her Wild Things air every Tuesday at 9/8c on Bravo. New episodes are available to stream the next day on Peacock.
The post Denise Richards, Sami Sheen, And Lola Sheen Tease Charlie Sheen Cameo In New Bravo Series: “You Will See Him” appeared first on Decider.
