Fans of the 2004 MTV reality hit Laguna Beach may be surprised to hear just how fake the feud was between Lauren Conrad and Kristin Cavallari.
Appearing on Cavallari’s podcast with co-star and ex-boyfriend Stephen Colletti, Back to the Beach, the trio talked about the love triangle that was at the center of the series, and just the network played up this faux dispute.
“I think it was done when they started filming,” Conrad said of their spat. “This is what I remember: I remember everything happened and then was it… formal? It was like, the week before they started filming, we got into it and then made up. And it was fine. And they came… I don’t think we were best friends, but we were fine.”
Cavallari agreed. “My take on it is, you and I never really had any beef,” she said. “Obviously there was a little truth to what happened with the three of us, but I felt like MTV coming kept it alive and made it way worse than it ever would have been.”
Conrad did note that the conflict is what made the show work: “I think they saw this as a starting point and then they ran with it, which I get — it made for an interesting show.”
She also took the opportunity to apologize to Cavallari, noting how awful she felt watching back the Cabo episode and hearing herself call Cavallari a “slut” for dancing on the bar during spring break. “I couldn’t believe I did that, because I think where I’m at now — I would never call another woman that, or girl. And it was, for me, the most embarrassing moment, like, ‘Oh gross.’”
Cavallari took the opportunity to apologize for the hurtful things she said about Conrad as well, noting how insecure she was at the time. “When I watch it now, I’m like, I wasn’t confident at all,” she said. “I was actually so insecure, and I took it out on you in a lot of ways. And I am sorry for that, because I said some horrible things.”
So that sets the record straight — their beef is very much squashed, and most of what happened on the show was crafted by the producers. But that doesn’t make the series any less fun to watch, even all these years later.
Watch their chat below:
Laguna Beach, Seasons 1-2, Streaming, Friday, November 11, Netflix
