Kristen Doute is speaking out about getting fired from Vanderpump Rules— and calling out Bravo for missing an opportunity to use her axing to educate fans and other ‘VP’ cast members about the Black Lives Matter movement and racism.
Kristen— who was fired along with three other ‘Vanderpump Rules’ cast members back in June for her racially insensitive actions and comments— gave her first official post-firing interview to the Hollywood Raw podcast this week. During the interview, she revealed how she was informed she was getting booted from ‘Vanderpump,’ and revealed how she’s dealing with the situation now.
“I would be lying if I said it wasn’t hard to lose my job, and essentially lose everything that I’ve worked for…it was really f**king hard,” Kristen told podcast hosts Dax Holt and Adam Glyn. “But the world is bigger than me, I can be better and I can gain the respect of people back by showing, by action.”
Kristen said Bravo handled the firings wrong, and that she feels filming them for the show would have “forced [people] to have these difficult conversations,” and allowed the show’s fans to see “that we are doing action,” which she said includes donating to Black women’s charities and working with Black women’s fashion lines. Still, though, Kristen feels Bravo missed an opportunity to use the firings for good.
“I think that it would have been a lot smarter for them to film about this,” Kristen said. “I think that this was a perfectly wide-open door for Bravo to take the initiative and have this conversation…I think it would have helped me, I think it would have helped other people on my cast, those that were let go, those that were not.”
Kristen, who has touched on the damage that ‘cancel culture’ can do over the past few weeks, expressed her feelings on the topic during the interview.
“I know this probably sounds super selfish for someone that’s canceled to say they don’t believe in cancel-culture, but the reason why is I believe we are in such a detrimental point in our pop culture to politics to full society where people in my position.,” she said.
Kristen also opened up for the first time about how she found out she was being fired from ‘Vanderpump Rules.’
“My lawyer actually dropped the note to me, letting me know that I was no longer going to be on the show,” she said. “It was like a fancy way of saying, ‘You’re done.’ [They said] ‘We’re not exercising your option [to continue on the show].’ I never got to speak to anyone, which was really hard because I would have liked to have had a conversation and, in turn, I really wish they would have talked about this publicly.
“I think there was something better, something smarter they could have done rather than passing along the ‘you’re off of the show note’ to my attorney like the game of telephone,” she said, adding that she found out about the firing a few minutes before the news broke online.
She then talked about what life was like for her in the days after she found out she was being fired.
“I would be lying if I didn’t say that the first couple of weeks [after the firing] were really emotional,” Kristen said. “I wasn’t doing that well. I think I was just really all over the place. I’m not used to being silenced and it was a lot to take in that people had a certain perception of me that I didn’t hold myself. Sprinkled in there was, like, drinking and crying.
“Shortly thereafter I just started listening. I was having conversations with a lot of my friends, and specifically to be honest a lot of my Black friends and they told me to shut up and listen. So that’s exactly what I did.”
As for who has been supporting her through this career catastrophe, Kristen said she has heard from Bravo’s Andy Cohen but not from ‘Vanderpump’ matriarch Lisa Vanderpump.
“Lisa, nope, not at all. Andy DM’d me [on Instagram] and said ‘Hang in there,'” she said, adding later that she is “sad that Andy supported the firing of us” but that she’s not angry with him for it.
Kristen has also received public support from her boyfriend Alex Menache, as well as her friend (and fellow fired co-star) Stassi Schroeder. Kristen stated that getting fired together has actually helped her grow closer to Stassi, who recently announced she’s expecting her first child with fiance Beau Clark.
“We’ve definitely been in contact a lot more than we have been lately. I’m sorry that it’s all happening at this time but I’m so happy for her and Beau,” Kristen said. “She’s been my best friend for 10 years. … I’m just trying to be there to support her. And she’s been doing the same for me… I’ve seen her a couple of times; I think everyone knows that. I was grateful that she let me in on the news earlier and I just want to try to keep her calm and keep her happy and keep the baby healthy.”
Kristen and Stassi have each issued statements apologizing for their actions, and during the podcast, Kristen admitted, “the biggest thing that I’ve learned is that I have so much to learn. She also expressed regret for “sending a mob out” to accuse Faith Stowers of crimes she didn’t commit.
“The first couple of weeks, all I wanted to do was be like, ‘Oh my god! Hear my truth! Hear my voice!’ But this is the first time in my life I’m realizing that the world is so much bigger than just my viewpoint of the world.
“Right now, it’s day by day. There are good days and bad days,” she added later. “Some days I wake up crying and have to force myself out of bed and be like, ‘This isn’t the end of your world because you’re dropped from a show, or things were taken away from you. It was a consequence to an action, so that’s that. I’m just trying to…learn more, do better, be better.”
Kristen stated that she hopes she gets an opportunity to show her fans that she’s grown from this incident, although she doesn’t think that opportunity will come by her returning to ‘Vanderpump Rules.’
“I don’t know as far as Bravo goes, or you know, the network…I would love a second chance, absolutely, I would love to make a difference. It’s always what I’ve stood for, even if you didn’t see that on ‘Vanderpump Rules.’ I want to make things better.”
Listen to Kristen’s entire interview with the Hollywood Raw podcast below!
(Photos: Bravo, Instagram)
15 Responses
Critter.
You need to plan stASSsi baby shower
Her broke butt gunna need stuff now.
Dunzo. No 2nd chance for U.
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Girl Bye! You and your now friend Stassi need to Crawl back under your Rock n Stay Their Pleaseèe!
Andy Cohen is becoming more repulsive to me by the day. He seems like such a good down to earth person on tv but in tweets and tv decision making not so much!!!! Do you see what BLM is doing? The racism coming from them??? The violence???? You allow garcelle to make comments about white people but a white person says one thing that offends someone and they’re fired???? Come on Andy!!!! Stop being a follower!
I honestly won’t watch without Krysten. She brought it. I do not think this was racist.
Agreed. They are just bitchy girls and don’t care what race you are. Sometimes I actually like Kristen. Stassi has rarer moments for me. Katie? Ugh…can’t stand Katie.
People get over it. The whole show should be cancelled. These snotty filthy mouth girls got what they deserve. Get over it.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it a million times more…THIS WAS NOT RACISM!! They didn’t like the girl because she messed around with their friends boyfriend not because she was black!! She could have been any color and the mean girl antics would have came out! This girl just took advantage of what was going on in the world to call them out and get publicity for it! This story came out 2 years ago and were they fired then?! NO! Because everyone, Bravo included, saw it for what it was…them getting back at her for what she did with Jax !! Should they have been called out and had to answer for themselves for being bitches?! Absolutely!! But should they be fired for being racist?! NO! Bravo and VPR got so popular because these girls are exactly that…bitches who bring the drama!! So IDK why they see this as any different!! Maybe because now they have to pretend to give a shit!!
Couldn’t agree more! I am not a fan of Kristin or Stassi because they are equal opportunity bitches to everyone! This had zero to do with racism. Shit, even Faith knows it didn’t have anything to do with race! Faith was just trying to find a way to be relevant again. There was something leaked between her and someone else literally plotting to do exactly what she did!
It doesnt matter if it was racist. It was using the poilice to harrass people which is a crime. Even if they didnt file a report they waste police time investigating a bogus tip. These two hoes are done. Get that thru your head. If you want to watch them then go on their social media but MTV has said “good bye to bad rubbish.”
Yes, it is racism.
They called the police, gave them a bogus tip saying that Faith was a suspected thief because the suspect was black and because all black people look the same, right?
Not to mention that police treat black suspects different than white suspects, everyone knows this. They knew that when they made the false report. It isn’t an accident that they called the police on a black woman.
You should have given Faith that same option to sat down and ask her if she were the one police were looking for…but you want some to give you that opportunity. Girl go up and learn how to love yourself and maybe you can have love for others….It was not your business to do what u 2 did.
You say Bravo should have sat down with you before the firing…but the same goes for you.you should have talked to Faith and ask her about the lady who was wanted instead of calling the police.RIGHT?
Come on Bravo and VPR, the apologized. The realize what the did was wrong. Give them their jobs back. Seriously. Nick Cannon did his underwhelming apology and he gets to keep his job. This is a bit fucked up. Double standard. Where is the equality?!
They didnt get rid of Nick most likely because he’s actually a talented celebrtiy and he probably had an iron clad contract where they would have paid dearly. Same way they cant cancel Mel Gibson. Stacy and Kristen are reality tv stars past their prime. They didnt bring anything but vulgarity and meangirl antics. Is it fair, of course not but now Kristen and Stacey get to experience what its like to watch entitlement while being the underdog. karma
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Don’t nobody give A fuck about everyone being regretful and remorseful after they’ve been called out. All these folks are having the covers yanked off the racism that is their normal and I’m here for it.