After 17 seasons and 12 years spent as a part of Keeping Up With the Kardashians, Kourtney Kardashian decided to take a step back from the show before the start of the new season. The season premiere of KUWTK airs on March 26, 2020, at 8 p.m. on E!.
Kourtney, who is the eldest Kardashian sister, opened up on a special episode of In the Room to talk about her decision to take a step back from the show. She said that she has been so busy working that she hasn’t been able to spend time being a good mom to her children, and she finally decided it was time to make a change.
“My kids have always been my top priority, but I never had time with them after school to do their homework and go to their activities,” the 40-year-old explained. “They all really need one-on-one time with me, so making an effort to do something, it’s time-consuming. It’s like it’s my whole life.”
She also said she felt like she was “on a hamster wheel” when it came to filming the show and she knew it was time that “something needed to change.”
Kourtney Will Still Be Part of Season 18
In a January 2020 interview on The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Kendall Jenner said that Kourtney was not necessarily leaving the show but instead setting boundaries when it came to her personal life.
“With Kourtney, she did at one point let her personal life be on the show, and so now it’s more of a shift, I guess, for everyone to understand,” she said. “But no I don’t think she’s fully confirmed to not be on the show. Let’s just say it gets a little bit crazier before it gets any better. And it’s just… there’s some pretty crazy things that happen.”
Kourtney echoed those sentiments while on In the Room and said she would still be on season 18 of the show though her desire to leave the show is a major plot point. She has been previously criticized by Kim Kardashian for not sharing enough of her life in season 18.
“Our job is being open and honest and sharing a lot of ourselves, and it just seems like, for the past few years now, Kourtney hasn’t really been open about her personal life on camera,” Kim said in an interview. “So all of the days that Kourtney isn’t filming, Khloe and I are picking up the slack and having to share more. Because if we’re not sharing our lives, then what is the show?
Kourtney Wants to Prioritize Her Children
In November 2019, Kourtney revealed that she wanted to take a step back to focus on her three children Mason, Penelope and Reign. Each of the children are under 10 years old.
“I just decided to spend more time as a mom and put more of my energy there,” she told Entertainment Tonight at the time. “But I’m not saying goodbye… I think you’ll have to see more of it on the new season, season 18.”
She added that the new season was still being filmed at the time.
Keeping Up With the Kardashians airs on Thursday nights at 8 p.m. on E!.
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