Ever since reality TV began, one of the biggest draws has been the drama — specifically, the fighting that breaks out while the cameras are rolling. Through the years — from Laguna Beach and The Hills to the Real Housewives and beyond, the claws come out when action is called.
Although Lauren Conrad butted heads with Kristin Cavallari during Laguna Beach, her feud with Heidi Montag on The Hills was even more next-level. Shortly after the women moved to Los Angeles together in the 2006 first season, Heidi began dating Spencer Pratt, who Lauren did not trust. However, it turned into something more when Lauren believed that Spencer started a rumor that she had made a sex tape.
“I would say that the entire story line of Heidi becoming involved with Spencer, and Lauren feeling really betrayed by Heidi, that was what created the monster success of the show. That’s just a classic story,” producer Sean Travis told Refinery29 in 2016.
He added: “We were thinking of this as stages that Lauren was going through — your best friend, the big dream, and then betrayal, and ultimately, attempted reconciliation. We dealt with these themes intentionally over multiple episodes, and then eventually acceptance, and then attempting at forgiveness but never quite getting there.”
Their feud came to a head at the start of season 3, when the famous “You know what you did” scene took place.
“Lauren would forever say, ‘I’m not mentioning Heidi’s name,’ or, ‘I’m not doing the show if she’s on the show.’ We were so sympathetic to that, but at the same time, you had Heidi wanting to make up with Lauren, still wanting to be a part of the show,” the producer continued. “And [you had] the sex tape rumors that Lauren didn’t want to talk about, yet that was a betrayal that was so important and such a big elephant in the room that we just had to work with Lauren and say, ‘Alright, so what are we going to do? We are going to have to access this somehow.’ It’s always a discussion.”
Over the years, many feuds have played out in similar manners in front of the camera. Scroll through the gallery below for more memorable moments.