14 Reality TV Relationships That Were Fabricated For TV
Published on July 8, 2016. Updated November 5, 2018While we love watching the “realities” our favorite celebs unfold, it is true that some lives just need to be spiced up every once and while with a dash of romance! And reality television producers and fame chasers take heed and listen and invent wildly entertaining tales of passion for our viewing pleasure. This list takes a look at some of those relationships that were simply inventions of reality TV!
14. Kenya Moore and Walter Jackson
The Real Housewives of Atlanta star, Kenya Moore hasn’t exactly had the best luck with romance while on the show. When she first joined the show back in 2012 she had a boyfriend named Walter Jackson. Their relationship didn’t last long, and in 2014 he spoke publicly about how Kenya asked him to ‘pretend’ to be her love interest on the show. Jackson did an interview with Daily Mail and said, “Kenya is a great actress, you have to give her that. She’s very good entertainment and the viewers want to tune in and watch what she’s going to do or say next, but nothing you see is real, I mean come on, does anyone actually believe what she says anymore?” He said the two dated briefly before she joined the show, but went their separate ways. When she landed the slot on RHOA she got back in touch with him and asked him to pose as her on-screen boyfriend. It was a win-win situation for both of them. Based on his own experience with Kenya, Jackson also stated that her romance with her “African Prince” was most likely fake as well. Her co-stars shared the same sentiment as no one had met this mystery man. She was even accused of paying him $40,000 to pose as her boyfriend and help create an interesting storyline for the show!
Bravo13. Kristin Cavallari and Brody Jenner
Kirstin Cavallari has been spilling a lot of secrets about what went on behind the scenes during the making of Laguna Beach and The Hills. She has publicly stated that many storylines were fabricated by producers involving themselves in their livings and through carefully edited footage. In 2013 she went on the talk show Bethenny and said, “I faked relationships, faked fights. I don’t care anymore; I can tell you. At this point, it’s been so many years.” Basically they all faked it till they made it! She then went on to explain one particular situation where she made it seem like she was in a relationship with Brody Jenner, but at the time he was actually dating another girl and their entire relationship was just a storyline for the show. While she admits she did truthfully have a fling with Brody at one time, it was before she appeared The Hills. Her relationship with him while filming was entirely fake. “Brody Jenner at the time was dating Jayde Nicole. I dated Brody when I was 18, right after ‘Laguna Beach,’ actually, and that’s it and then on the show, on ‘The Hills,’ they had us ‘dating’ for a few episodes. They pretended that him and Jayde broke up, and I was dating Brody, and Jade and I got into a huge fight because she saw us in a club. It wasn’t real at all. They were together the entire time,” she said.
JOHN SHEARER/WIREIMAGE12. Nick Peterson and Rachel Truehart
While watching Bachelor Pad back in 2012, viewers were torn between whether Nick Peterson was one of the smartest players or simply a jerk for faking it with Rachel Truehart. At the end of the show, he was given the choice of whether or not to share the winning $250,000 with his partner, Rachel Truehart, or keep it all for himself. It is the truest test of whether or not the feelings are genuine. After some serious backlash, Peterson spoke out on the subject and claims he didn’t set out to hurt Truehart, but rather play the game. He does admit that him and Rachel had agreed to share the money, which is something he went back on, but he doesn’t regret his decision because “I saw the things she said about me behind my back, and I believe that justified me keeping the money.” Ouch!
ABC11. Stephen Colletti and Lauren Conrad
Fans of The Hills and Laguna Beach definitely bought into MTV’s reality scheme back in the early 2000’s, but now it’s been over a decade since the show was on air and many of the stars have spoken out against how fabricated these shows really were. No one has been more outspoken than Kristin Cavallari, especially when it comes to the relationships. In her book, “Balancing in Heels,” Cavallari discussed her high school relationship with co-star Stephen Colletti and the love triangle between them and Lauren Conrad wasn’t. She wrote, “One of the most hurtful things they did was pressure Stephen to spend time with another girl from the show, Lauren, while he and I were dating. It certainly provided some juicy conflicts, but it also affected me deeply.” She pinpointed a particular scene when the group was out for dinner and Stephen was mouthing ‘I love you’ and being incredibly sweet to Cavallari. However, producers used strategic editing to make it seem like he was saying that to Lauren, “…during editing, the producers made it seem like he was saying a lot of that to the other girl he was ‘seeing’ and that I was rolling my eyes at him, which wasn’t the case…Producers also had Stephen go up to this same girl’s house to hang out, which they made me believe was all on his own, so the joke was on me. Later I would find out they told him to go.”
Source: MTV10. Chad Johnson and JoJo Fletcher
This season on The Bachelorette, Chad Johnson was quickly deemed this seasons villain. He continuously butted heads with the other men vying for JoJo’s love and he was just down right mean! There are rumors that Chad faked an interest in JoJo so that he could get on television, make a reputation in the media and hopefully in the grand scheme of things become the next Bachelor. However, Chad didn’t even made it halfway through the season, but somehow even though he isn’t on the show anymore he’s managed to remain relevant and become one of the most talked about contestants! It’s pretty clear now that Chad loves the attention he’s getting for being the ‘villain’ and it seems he wasn’t all that heartbroken about getting kicked off the show which further proves he was in it for all the wrong reasons. He has continued to mock the final contestants on the show, most notably when he posted an Instagram picture kissing Robby’s ex-girlfriend, Hope Higginbotham. It was recently announced that Chad will be a member of season 3 of Bachelor In Paradise so his villainous legacy will live on…for now.
ABC/Rick Rowell9. Kris and Bruce Jenner
This relationship was at one point truly authentic, however since Bruce Jenner came out as Caitlyn Jenner there’s been a lot of speculation as to how much Kris knew about her upcoming transition and how long their marriage was ‘on the rocks.’ The long-time couple had been starring on the hit reality show, Keeping up with the Kardashians for 11 seasons. Their relationship started to come into question a few years ago when Bruce unexpectedly decided to buy a home in Malibu. He played it off like he needed his own “space,” but really it was his safe haven for being Caitlyn Jenner. Despite being married for 23-years the couple never seemed to spend much time together and when Bruce moved out, it became pretty clear their marriage was headed for divorce. Low and behold, the two ended up getting divorced and not long after Bruce’s transition was underway. When he made his officially “coming out” as Caitlyn in an issue of Vanity Fair, Caitlyn didn’t seem to have much sympathy for Kris and even hinted that she knew more than she was letting on. There’s enough reason to speculate that Kris held onto the marriage in order to keep up appearances for the show, but she remains adamant that she did not know the extent of Bruce’s identity crisis and that their marriage was real to her.
Photo by Picture Perfect / Rex Features
8. Justin Bobby and Audrina Partridge
The Hills was just too good to be true and like so many on this list, producers just couldn’t shy away from a good story, even if they had to invent it themselves. Audrina Partridge was the girl next door who met and fell for bad boy, Justin Bobby. Well we’ve certainly heard the tale before, but this time it somehow seemed fresher! But as it turns out, the couple were never really in a relationship and were just good friends. In 2009, Bobby revealed to the Los Angeles Times that the connection was a complete farce invented by strategic editing by the show’s producers. He claimed that their scenes were simply pieced together to make it look like the couple were an item. Sad days.
Film Magic
7. Lauren Conrad and Brody Jenner
I know, I know, right? This one is devastating! Fans of The Hills were super stoked to the see the beautiful Lauren Conrad take up a romantic relationship with the desirable Brody Jenner. Unfortunately, the relationship was just for the camera and it would seem that the show played matchmaker according to fan preferences. Brody kept the façade going until coming clean in a 2014 podcast. “Lauren and I have always been just friends,” he said. “We had to pretend like we were dating but we never dated.”
John Shearer/WireImage
6. Jon Gosselin and Liz Janetta
After Jon and Kate Gosselin called it quits, Jon was grasping at straws to stay in the limelight. Rumor has it that Jon turned in his girlfriend, Hailey Glassman, after she refused to appear on Couples Therapy, and shopped around until he found Liz Janetta who was game for fame! What a ladies’ man!
Source: www.starcasm.net
5. Farrah Abraham and Brian Dawe
Ahh, another Couples Family tale of false woe. According to Radar Online, Farrah Abraham was set to appear on the series with her supposed boyfriend, Brain Dawe. But once again, the pair were simply masquerading as a couple in troubled waters for fame and fortune. Luckily, Dawe saw the light and pulled out of the show before it filmed in spite of threats of serious legal ramifications if he did not appear on the show. “I decided my morals and integrity were worth more than any amount of money,” he told Starcasm. “I stepped out of the security line [at the airport] and made a life-changing decision to stand up for what I believe in and turn down the check I would be receiving for my appearance on this show.” Of course, Abraham couldn’t pass up a chance to keep her name in the headlines and still went through with the show, stating that he boyfriend “disappeared.”
PacificCoastNews.com
4. Candis Cayne and Caitlyn Jenner
Taking notes from her son Brody, Caitlyn (formally Bruce) Jenner seems to be flirting up a storm with fellow transitioner, Candis Cayne. The faux-relationship on I Am Cait has come under fire for being staged for dramatic effect. Cayne was only introduced to Jenner after being cast on the show. A source for Radar Online said, “Caitlyn didn’t just meet all of these already famous transgender people by accident…they were cast and, yes, they are getting paid.” Cayne has also put the relationship in its place when she told Access Hollywood, “We’re just really, really good friends,” adding also that she’s attracted to men.
RMCL/MACIEL/AKM-GSI
3. Joshua Albers and Tenley Molzahn
According to everyone’s favorite Bachelor/Bachelorette insider, Reality Steve, the relationship between Tenley and Joshua on Bachelor in Paradise was completely feigned for fame and fortune! And it doesn’t end there! Apparently the whole twisted scheme was entirely orchestrated by the once naïve and love-seeking Tenley on the unwitting Joshua! According to Steve, “she was never going to continue a relationship with Josh outside of this show—but she sure made him think she would.” But she seemed so nice! I guess with all of her experience with the Bachelor franchise, she’s finally figured out what’s up!
©ABC / courtesy Everett Collection
2. Kris Humphries and Kim Kardashian
It’s not hard to believe that a Kardashian feigned being interesting to keep the cameras rolling. Kris Humphries and Kim Kardashian can be added to that long list of failed celebrity marriages, and this one ended after a whopping 72 days! I have food in my fridge older than that! According to Radar Online, the sham marriage was exposed by a Keeping Up with the Kardashians producer who admitted to scripting, re shooting, or editing scenes in a deposition pertaining to Humphries’ court battle with Kardashian. In the divorce proceedings, Humphries claimed that the $10 million wedding was simply staged by producers in an attempt to get ratings. Given the fact that the divorce proceedings lasted longer than their marriage and that Kim was pregnant with Kanye’s baby before she was even divorced, I’d say Chris Humphries is telling the truth about the scam!
admedia / Shutterstock.com
1. Emily Maynard and Jef Holm
This couple was adorable and Bachelor Nation completely supported the beautiful and seemingly charming single mother, Emily, in her pursuit of love. When she selected entrepreneur Jef Holm as her hubby-to-be, we couldn’t have been happier, but of course, there was trouble in paradise. Rumors flew of infidelity on both ends of the relationship, and when one of Jef’s exes came forward to US Weekly, she claimed that Jef stated his relationship with Emily was a business deal. Ouch! According to Jef’s ex Kaylee, when Jef found texts between Emily and another man, he gave her an ultimatum: “Well, we have two options: The first is I can go to the media and tell them the truth and let everyone know what you’re really like. Or two, I will deny the whole thing and you give me half the money you made from The Bachelorette.” Apparently Emily chose the latter to help maintain her squeaky clean image!
Source: Celebuzz