In 2012, Kim Zolciak appeared to be at the height of her reality-TV fame. One year after marrying former NFL player Kroy Biermann, the Real Housewives of Atlanta star had become one-half of Bravo’s most talked-about couples.
Their first meeting was filmed for RHOA, and viewers quickly embraced the couple. Their popularity led to a spin-off, Don’t Be Tardy, which aired from 2012 through 2020. Named after Zolciak’s signature 2009 song, the series followed the couple and their expanding family of eight through a life that often appeared both comfortable and chaotic.
At the time, Zolciak seemed to have the reality-star dream package: a high-profile romance, a lavish home and a large family.
Fifteen years after her rise to Bravo fame, however, her personal life has become increasingly turbulent.
Zolciak and Biermann, who once spoke openly and frequently about their passionate relationship, are now locked in a bitter separation and divorce that remains unresolved. Their breakup has also unfolded alongside allegations against their 15-year-old son involving sexual assault, claims that the family has denied.
People who have known Zolciak for years say they are not entirely surprised that her pursuit of reality-TV fame has spiraled into what now looks like a real-life crisis.
For years, Kim Zolciak appeared to have the reality-TV dream: a major romance, a lavish home and a large family
One year after marrying former NFL player Kroy Biermann, the Real Housewives of Atlanta star was part of Bravo’s most celebrated couples
Fifteen years after becoming a Bravo star, Zolciak is facing a deeply troubled chapter in her personal life
Jonathan Jaxson, who served as Zolciak’s publicist between 2007 and 2009, described the environment surrounding her life to the Daily Mail as “just a very toxic world.”
Having worked closely with her, Jaxson also said he understands how quickly people can become drawn into the reality star’s fast-moving orbit.
“She was the life of the party,” he recalled, while suggesting that the world around Zolciak could feel both “addictive” and damaging.
He compared the experience to being trapped in a spectacle: “Gosh, the train wreck I’m part of—and you can’t get off the wagon.”
Jaxson said he last spoke with Zolciak in 2022, a year before she filed for divorce following 11 years of marriage. Zolciak and Biermann first met in 2010 at a charity event called Dancing With Atlanta Stars, which was recorded for television. They married on November 11, 2011.
Since announcing their separation in 2023, Zolciak and Biermann—the former Atlanta Falcons linebacker and Surreal Life cast member—have repeatedly reconciled and broken apart. Their relationship has also been marked by lawsuits, custody disagreements and mounting financial problems, culminating in the sale of their large Alpharetta, Georgia, home last year.
Over the past two years, Zolciak has remained in the headlines amid highly public disputes with Biermann, the father of her six children: Brielle Karenna Biermann, 29; Ariana Lenee Biermann, 24; Kroy “KJ” Biermann Jr., 15; Kash Kade Biermann, 14; and 12-year-old twins Kaia Rose and Kane Ren Biermann.
Last month, KJ was charged in connection with a sexual-assault case involving a female classmate. The teenager and his family have denied the allegations, which relate to an alleged April 23 incident at a Life Time fitness facility in Alpharetta, Georgia.
According to a police report obtained by the Daily Mail, KJ is accused of forcing the girl to perform oral sex and of attacking her with his hands against her will.
A Georgia grand jury indicted KJ on seven felony counts. The charges include aggravated child molestation, aggravated sodomy, aggravated sexual battery, three counts of sexual battery involving a child under 16 and false imprisonment.
KJ was released last month after posting a $200,000 bond. If convicted, he could receive a sentence of up to 25 years in prison without parole because of the multiple felony assault charges tied to the allegations. His arraignment is set for October 14.
‘The allegations being made against my son are nothing short of reckless and deeply troubling,’ Zolciak told the Daily Mail in an August statement. ‘He categorically denies ever being involved with this woman or engaging in the conduct she has alleged.
Last month, Zolciak and Biermann’s 15-year-old son KJ was charged in a sexual assault case involving a female classmate
The teen and his family have denied the allegations, which stem from an alleged incident at a Life Time fitness center in Alpharetta, Georgia, on April 23
KJ was indicted by a Georgia grand jury on seven felony charges. If convicted, he could face a 25-year prison sentence without the possibility of parole
‘False accusations can have devastating consequences not only for the person being accused, but also for genuine survivors of sexual assault and abuse. Every legitimate allegation deserves to be taken seriously and investigated based on the facts and evidence. At the same time, no one should be publicly condemned based solely on an accusation.
‘We remain confident that the facts and evidence will establish the truth, and we ask that people allow the proper process to take its course rather than spreading unproven allegations,’ she said.
KJ’s attorney said he intends to plead not guilty.
The estranged spouses put their differences aside long enough to appear together at KJ’s bond hearing last month. They arrived at Fulton County Superior Court in Atlanta separately and did not interact in the courtroom at all.
Since their April 2023 separation, they have accused one another of myriad things including alleged spousal abuse in court filings.
In 2024, Biermann was detained, handcuffed and ordered to wait in a cop car in front of the home he then-shared with Zolciak. At the time, he claimed in an incident report that he was ‘physically attacked’ by his estranged wife, alleging that she ‘scratched the c**p out of my face.’
He alleged that she was the ‘abuser’ in the report, but Zolciak claimed to police that Biermann ‘threw me off a f***ing ladder’ and ‘tossed me to the ground.’
Biermann, however, explained to the police in the report that Zolciak had ‘lost her balance, and I caught her’ while she was handling curtains. He also claimed in the report that she was ‘verbally abusive’ while completing the household task and allegedly ‘drinks every day.’
Jonathan Jaxson, Zolciak’s former publicist who worked with her from 2007 to 2009, told the Daily Mail: ‘It’s just a very toxic world’
Biermann has claimed in an incident report that Zolciak was ‘verbally abusive’ while completing the household task and allegedly ‘drinks every day’
The police interrogated two of their children, KJ and Kaia, who were home at the time of the alleged altercation. In footage captured by a police officer’s body camera, KJ is seen screaming at his mother: ‘You are a horrible example of a parent!’
Biermann was ultimately released, according to the report, but the pair were ordered to stay separated the rest of the night since they still lived in the same house at the time. The cops had instructed Zolciak to file for a protective order if she felt she was in danger.
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Jaxson, who reconnected with Zolciak during her separation from Biermann, claimed to the Daily Mail that around that time, Biermann had become ‘very unkind. Not a friendly human on the phone at all, very aggressive in tone,’ which ‘raised flags for me.’
Earlier this month, the Daily Mail reported that, since 2025, a court-appointed Guardian ad litem was tasked with watching out for the children’s best interests while the couple battled over custody.
The estranged exes share joint legal custody of their minor children, but Biermann currently has primary physical custody, which means he has final say on educational, non-emergency medical and religious decisions. The Housewives star’s two adult children, Brielle and Ariana, are currently estranged from their adopted father Biermann.
Zolciak has twice temporarily lost physical custody of the children, once in April and again on May 1, according to temporary orders filed by the judge, who ruled her to be ‘unstable and unfit.’
One example Biermann provided in the April court filing of Zolciak being an allegedly ‘unfit’ parent, was that ‘she frequently leaves them alone or under the care of others for significant periods of time,’ and she ‘takes no initiative and shows no interest in providing for the children’s mental health and well-being, leaving all therapy appointments and scheduling to [Kroy].’
However, Zolciak has alleged that Biermann was also lacking as a parent, claiming in a June 2026 filing that KJ, specifically, suffered ‘abuse’ at the hands of his father.
Zolciak and Biermann, who once bragged about their sex life nonstop, are in the middle of a very contentious separation and divorce which has yet to be finalized
Those who know Zolciak best are not surprised that her reality stardom dream has become a real-life nightmare
In the filing, the reality star claimed in an October 2025 incident between KJ and Biermann at his home that ‘the eldest minor child reported being physically thrown over the couch by Plaintiff during a heated argument at Plaintiff’s home.’
She alleged that ‘at least one of the minor children has disclosed to his therapist (heaped upon him by the Guardian ad Litem) a pattern of mental, emotional and physical abuse by Plaintiff; yet no professionals have sounded an alarm because the abuse did not ‘leave marks.”
Zolciak further claimed that ‘KKJ [sic]’ – most likely referring to KJ – ‘outlined in great detail how often he is pushed, shoved, grabbed, yanked and generally physically battered by Plaintiff during his parenting time,’ which he allegedly discussed with his therapist.
The Guardian was also informed of an alleged incident that took place during spring break 2026 when Biermann reportedly threw ‘a pan at a child’s head during a heated argument while on vacation,’ according to Zolciak’s June motion for an emergency custody hearing.
The child was allegedly KJ’s girlfriend, and her mother wrote a letter to the court explaining the incident, which stated, ‘[KJ’s girlfriend] became the main focus with Kroy yelling so loudly that she was crying and trembling in fear.’
In that same filing, Zolciak alleged that the young girl’s mother claimed to her that her daughter was ‘subject to frightening rage fueled tirades by Plaintiff.’
Zolciak has claimed in court documents that the Guardian chose not to investigate the allegations. The Guardian did, however, recommend Biermann ‘undergo anger management therapy.’
Biermann, for his part, claimed in his July 13 response filing that Zolciak’s tactics throughout the proceedings ‘create enough chaos to deflect attention away from Respondent and all the destruction that her narcissistic-fueled actions have brought upon these children and their lives.’
He added that she allegedly ‘lashes out in a desperate attempt to distract attention from her own substantial shortcomings as a parent.’
In an August 2025 motion for immediate change of custody and parenting time filing, Biermann claimed that Zolciak and their daughter Kaia have a ‘tumultuous relationship,’ and that she ‘abused’ Kaia.
At the time, Biermann, along with the endorsement of the Guardian, requested that the court allow the 12-year-old to spend the summer in Montana with his parents.
He claimed in the filing: ‘Additionally, there is immediate concern for the physical, emotional and mental safety of the female child because if the current parenting plan remains in place, she will be forced to reside with her tormentor and abuser.’
The request was ultimately granted.
Jaxson claimed that Zolciak’s ‘very turbulent’ lifestyle seemed to become ‘toxic.’
Zolciak’s two adult children, Brielle and Ariana, are currently estranged from their adopted father Biermann
Zolciak temporarily lost physical custody of the children twice, once in April and again on May 1, according to temporary orders filed by the judge, who ruled her to be ‘unstable and unfit’
Jaxson, however, has a lot of thoughts on the situation with KJ, who, after being released from Atlanta Metro Regional Youth Detention Center on bond, is back living with his mom.
‘Can you imagine you’re trying to play football, be the star athlete, and then the wig showing up along with Kroy,’ Jaxson said, using Zolciak’s nickname. ‘It’s hard. You’re going to be judged.’
Zolciak has refuted the accusations against her son, who, as part of his bond conditions, must attend school virtually and abstain from social media and cellphone use, as well as be subject to electronic monitoring by authorities.
The teenager is also barred from having any direct or indirect contact with his alleged victim, her family or anyone under the age of 16.
In a statement to the Daily Mail last month, Zolciak said: ‘My son voluntarily took a polygraph examination regarding these allegations and passed.
‘Additionally, an examination was conducted, and no DNA belonging to my son was found.’
The alleged victim was examined at the North Fulton Hospital in Georgia on April 24, a day after the alleged incident, and, per the report, no evidence of male DNA was found in her mouth or vagina.
The Daily Mail has reached out to Zolciak’s representatives for comment.
However, he said Kim is ‘very lucky’ with her new boyfriend Kyle Mowitz, whose estranged wife Jillian Green is romantically involved with Biermann.
Jaxson’s advice for the reality star during this difficult time? Focus on ‘your truth instead of putting other people down.’
‘If I was her publicist now, I would say, “Kim, let’s focus on your wig line. Let’s focus on book. Let’s focus on other things.”‘
But that could be difficult for Zolciak, according to Jaxson, who believes she does not appear to be a ‘trusting person.’
