Paul Morigi/Getty Monique Samuelsis ready for her Bravo second act! Monique Samuels is returning toThe Real Housewives of Potomacfor season 10 in a Friend role The move follows her 2023 divorce from husband Chris Samuels after 11 years of marriage Season 10 is filming now with Gizelle Bryant, Ashley Darby, Wendy Osefo and more The formerReal Housewives of Potomacstar — who famouslyexited the hit reality series in 2020— is officially returning for Season 10, PEOPLE can exclusively reveal. Production for the show is currently underway in Maryland, with last season's starsGizelle Bryant,Ashley Darby,Dr. Wendy Osefo,Keiarna StewartandStacey Ruschall filming again. Samuels will be joining the cast in a Friend capacity. Her comeback to the series that first made her a fan favorite (and later sparked one of the most talked-about departures inHousewiveshistory) comes at a pivotal time in Samuels' life. The 41-year-oldMila Eve Essentialsowner finalizedher divorce from former NFL offensive tackle Chris Samuels, 48, in September 2023. She and Chris were married for 11 years, and are parents to daughter Milani, 9, and sons Christopher, 12, and Chase, 6. "Monique's in a totally different place now, and fans will see that," a source tells PEOPLE. "She's excited to show who she is now — not as a wife, not as just a mom, but as a woman starting over and taking on life on her own terms." The PEOPLE Appis now available in the Apple App Store! Download it now for the most binge-worthy celeb content, exclusive video clips, astrology updates and more! Bravo viewers first met Monique when she joinedRHOPin season 2 back in 2017. It didn't take long for the entrepreneur to make her mark on the show, with her quick wit, luxury lifestyle and no-nonsense attitude. But by season 5, tensions among the cast (particularly with former costarCandiace Dillard Bassett) boiled over into an explosive on-camera altercation that dominated headlines and divided fans. After the season aired, Monique announced she wouldn't return. "I'm over it," she said at the time, citing how the incident — and the way it was portrayed — took a toll on her family and mental health. "It was a crazy ride. It's not easy doing reality TV," Monique wrote on Instagram. "I appreciate everything that people have done for me, everybody that's been Team Monique — I love y'all, I thank y'all — but when you cross certain lines there's no going back. And for me, my family is that line." "The opinion of my family and my kids and what they think about anything that I do is more valuable than anybody's opinion," she added. Since stepping away, Monique shifted her focus to her children and business ventures. She made a brief return to reality TV in 2022 on OWN'sLove & Marriage: DCalongside her then-husband — though their romance unraveled soon thereafter, Monique filing for divorce in April 2023. "I just got to the point where I was in a place where I was so miserable," she later shared. "I am no longer the person that I was when I walked down that aisle 11 years ago. ... If we keep going down this road and we're bickering at each other and we're not able to communicate — sometimes not even talking to each other — then how is this going to affect our children? Because I was thinking, like most people, 'Okay, we're going to stay together for the kids.' But that never works because staying together for the kids means that you're giving them a terrible example of what a relationship should be like." Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank/NBCUniversal Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE's free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. Season 10 ofRHOPis expected to air later this year. Two Housewives from season 9 won't be returning:Mia ThorntonandKaren Huger. Thornton announced her departure from the series in April, amid a move to Atlanta. Huger, meanwhile, is behind bars after beingsentenced to two years in prison, with one year suspended, for her fourth DUI conviction. The Real Housewives of Potomaccan be streamed on Peacock. Read the original article onPeople