Vanderpump Rules: The Rift Between Lala Kent And Katie Maloney Explained
"Vanderpump Rules" is an emotional rollercoaster. The bed-hopping, backstabbing cast goes from friends to foes at the drop of a hat. Such is the case with Lala Kent and Katie Maloney – the two had serious beef when Kent joined the reality show in Season 4. They managed to bury the hatchet at the end of Season 5, though, and by Season 6, they were friends. Still, that all changed once again in the blink of an eye.
"At the reunion back in February, we squashed it," Maloney told "The Morning Breath" podcast (via Bravo) in August 2017 about ending their feud. "I kind of had a moment of clarity, especially after the wedding, you know, kind of just felt like this release of everything, and I'm just like, 'I'm not this person; I don't want to beef with her, I don't know her.'"
The two got to know each other, and at first, everything seemed peachy. However, cracks soon began to form, and by Season 10, things appeared decidedly icy once again. But Kent insisted they'd patched things up, and everything was good. "I think [Maloney] has her feelings, and I always want to make sure she feels protected and heard. And I feel like we're back in a very good place," Kent told Us Weekly in February 2023. Not so fast! In the "Vanderpump Rules" Season 11 promo, there's trouble in paradise yet again. So, what happened? Here's the rift between Kent and Maloney explained.
Katie and Lala's derailed friendship
The "Vanderpump Rules" Season 11 promo promises fireworks when the show returns on January 30, 2024. Fans were left on the edge of their seats following an explosive confrontation between Tom Sandoval and Ariana Madix at the end of Season 10 over his affair with Rachel "Raquel" Leviss. And the new season promises to pick up where the last left off.
"It's a bit much," Katie Maloney snaps at Lala Kent. "You're a bit much all the time," Kent claps back. Well, the niceties are over between these two once again. "We have a rocky season, and it was extremely hard and sad," Kent told Us Weekly about her and Maloney's tumultuous relationship. "Especially because we were just ride-or-die Season 10. That made me sad, but we're good." Kent claimed she likes "friendships where we can have ups and downs and then find common ground." The SUR-ver insisted she wants pals who can "teach me something about myself."
Things started to become frosty between Maloney and Kent after Maloney took umbrage at Kent's friendship with Scheana Shay. There's no love lost between Maloney and Shay. They've been at loggerheads since Maloney accused Shay of encouraging her ex-husband, Tom Schwartz, to hook up with Leviss. Still, Kent just wants everybody to get along. "We're very passionate, you know? We definitely feel the feels, but I just hope that I can baby all of my friendships — even if they have to be separate," she told Us Weekly.
The Tom factor
It seems that all of the "Vanderpump Rules" cast have hooked up or fallen out with each other at some point. So, it's no surprise that Lala Kent and Katie Maloney's friendship is a tumultuous ride. Kent found herself at odds with Maloney again in January 2023 after she forgot to wish her a happy birthday, and the two went at it in a series of heated DMs. "Vibes are off. Vibes are definitely off," Maloney said of their friendship during an episode of her "You're Gonna Love Me" podcast.
"I got a lot going on," Kent clapped back during an episode of her "Give Them Lala" podcast, insisting the birthday slight wasn't intentional. "That is the least of my concerns. And I hope she had a very happy birthday. It slipped my mind that it was her birthday because it was M.L.K. Day. ... I completely spaced it. You know, with M.L.K. Day happening, and I had [my daughter] Ocean, and she was feeling sick. So there's that."
Kent and Maloney's strained friendship likely won't be helped by Kent's growing closeness to Maloney's ex-husband. "Wanting to give her daughter a sibling, Lala explores fertility treatments and looks for a sperm donor as a single mother," Kent's Bravo bio reads. "She finds an unlikely connection with Tom Schwartz, forming a friendship that neither saw coming, but creating tension between her and the rest of the girls as her forgiveness for the Toms grows."