"Selling Sunset" producers are racing to fill the void left by Christine Quinn's departure ... they need a new villain for the show, and they need to figure it out ASAP.
Production sources tell TMZ ... the folks who run the popular Netflix show are scrambling behind the scenes to figure out who is going to step into Christine's place as the bad girl, and they're hopeful holdover Chelsea Lazkani leans into the role in upcoming seasons.
We're told execs approached Chelsea about playing into the villain role once it became clear to producers in June Christine wasn't coming back, leading to conversations with Chelsea about embracing the role Christine played so well.