“The Real Housewives” franchise has led to multiple spinoffs, whether they be full series, like Kim Zolciak-Biermann’s “Don’t Be Tardy” or one-off specials, like Erika Jayne’s “Bet It All on Blonde”. Now, in a reunion first, “Real Housewife of Potomac” Robyn Dixon has pitched a new special to Andy Cohen and Bravo during the RHOP season 8 reunion show.
“I mean really, y’all should do a two-hour special on Juan Dixon’s life, it’s very intriguing,” Robyn told Cohen during part 1 of the reunion after a segment discussing her relationship.
Juan grew up in Baltimore, Maryland, and was raised by his grandparents after his mother and father died of AIDs before he reached 17 years of age. He first made national headlines as a college basketball player in 2002. 15 years later, as a part of HBO’s “Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel”, Juan sat down for an interview and opened up about the rest of his story.
Juan Dixon Found His Real Father Later in Life
According to the Baltimore Sun, in 2016 Juan approached a man named Bruce Flanigan who claimed he could be Juan’s biological father, and a DNA test performed in September of that year proved just that. According to the outlet, Flanigan dated Juan’s mother, Juanita, while they were in high school. After parting ways they briefly reconnected before Juanita married Phil Dixon.
Flanigan said that he ran into one of Juanita’s sisters once when Juan was a child, who told him, “You need to go by and see your son,” but wouldn’t give him any more details than that. Later on, he bumped into Juanita prior to her passing, and said “When I asked her for more information, she just got agitated and changed the subject.”
Flanigan then went on to describe the first time he saw Juan playing basketball on TV during his college career. “I knew who he was. I knew his name and the first time I saw him play, I said, ‘That’s my son.’ He reminded me so much of myself. … It was like we could have been twins.”
After beginning to suspect Juan might be his son, Flanigan bumped into him in a department store, and decided to say something. “I just told him, ‘I knew your mother in high school really well, and I know your whole family,’ and he relaxed. I told him that I had played ball, and I told him three things to work on: pace — he was always in high gear — dribbling and defense. ‘If you work on those things, you’re going to be good.’”
Flanigan decided not to tell Juan at the time, not wanting to throw a wrench in his thriving college basketball career. About 14 years later, however, Juan and Robyn suspected that Juan’s father may be alive, found Flanigan’s contact information, got in touch with him, and from there took the paternity test.
Since discovering the truth about their relationship, Juan and Flanigan have developed a close bond and friendship.
Robyn Dixon’s Future on RHOP is Unknown
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Despite suggesting the network film a new special about her husband, Robyn’s future on RHOP remains unclear. Prior to the season 8 reunion airing, only one cast change was made official, as Candiace Dillard Bassett announced her departure from the series.
Rumors began to swirl, however, as to whether Robyn would be joining Dillard Bassett in exiting the series. Queens of Bravo shared a headline suggesting Robyn may not be back for season 9 on March 25, although Bravo has neither confirmed nor denied.
“She finally got the spotlight and flipped it. Told us to mind our business about her and Juan. So she got what she wanted,” one fan wrote, noting Robyn’s attitude surrounding sharing personal details about her marriage on the show.
Henry Sinnott is an entertainment reporter who covers HGTV, The Voice, American Idol and Teen Mom for Heavy. Henry is based in Brooklyn, New York, and graduated from Binghamton University. He loves all things comedy and reality TV.
