Sonja Morgan’s riches to rags story absolutely rocked The Real Housewives of New York. The star found herself embroiled in a devastating bankruptcy case following her divorce from J.P. Morgan heir John Morgan. It lasted nearly five years, and as fans of the show know, the star’s decision to move out of her townhouse was a painful plot point.
According to E! News, Sonja filed for Chapter 11 protection in 2010, and somehow, actor John Travolta was involved. Why? Her production company, Sonja Productions, reportedly took a major hit after she backed a Travolta flick called Flash Flash to Bang Time in partnership with another company called Hannibal Pictures. The film never happened because she allegedly couldn’t meet Travolta’s demands. Hannibal Pictures ended up suing her and winning a cool $7 million.
In June 2015, Sonja clawed her way out of her massive debt. According to Enews, she wound up paying about $9 million — significantly less than the nearly $20 million she initially owed. However, she was reportedly sued by her bankruptcy attorney in 2017 for about $350K, so that doesn’t bode well.
