Getty Lisa Vanderpump in 2019
Lisa Vanderpump is telling all about the Vanderpump Rules cast. Vanderpump specifically spilled her feelings about former cast members James Kennedy and ex-girlfriend Kristen Doute. The two SURvers dated from season 3 to season 4 of the Bravo franchise. The former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills star opened up on her podcast All Things Vanderpump.
During an October episode, Vanderpump revealed how she felt about the past relationship between James Kennedy and Kristen Doute. The 60-year-old SUR owner explained that she thinks Kennedy used his ex-girlfriend Doute to get on the show. “It’s also a lot about who wants to be on a reality show,” she said.
Vanderpump didn’t stop there. She also said, “James Kennedy shagged Kristen so he could be on the show.” Even though Vanderpump wasn’t thrilled about his intentions, she explained she still talks to him every now and then, and Kennedy is “doing so well.” She added, “I keep up with him and he’s doing very well. James, I love you.”
The SUR busboy and DJ was fired in 2018. Vanderpump fired Kennedy after body-shaming costar Katie Maloney-Schwartz. Kennedy made asked if she was pregnant at a club in 2016, and he later made fun of her shorts and told her to “lose some weight” in 2018, according to People. Kennedy has since been sober and apologized to Maloney-Schwartz, saying, “It really is the last apology, Katie, and, you know, I’m really sorry for everything, seriously.”
Kristen Doute Also Thinks James Kennedy Used Her
Lisa Vanderpump isn’t the only one questioning Kennedy’s true intentions. Kristen Doute herself has vocalized her opinions on her ex-boyfriend. Following their split, Doute opened up about what she actually thought of the British DJ.
“James did his homework,” Doute told the Daily Dish in 2015. “He knew exactly what to do to get me. He knew when to swoop in, when I wasn’t really friends with anyone yet. [He also knew] basically don’t act like Tom [Sandoval] and don’t be an a**, and then I’m going to like him. And he also knows that I fix little, broken souls. He just did his homework and he knew exactly what he was doing. And he played me right until the point that he got through one whole season, became a primary and then dropped me.”
Doute reflected on her relationship with Kennedy on an episode of Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen in early 2019. After Cohen asked in a poll if the audience thinks Doute is still in love with Kennedy, the results were 50/50. “Interesting,” Kristen said of the results, according to the Daily Dish. “I’m completely shocked. James was a rebound, not a relationship.”
The 37-year-old reality star wrote a book titled, He’s Making You Crazy: How to Get the Guy, Get Even and Get Over It, in early 2020. She also opened up about Kennedy, writing, “I don’t think James has changed. I don’t know what it’s going to take for me ever to feel differently about that. I’m not sure. So I just try to keep my distance, because it’s the healthiest thing that I can do for me. I can’t force him to come out and apologize or to change his ways. And it would take a lot more than a simple apology for me to change my mind. It would take actual growth. And we’ve never seen that in the four, five years James has been on the show.”
Vanderpump Opened Up About Her True Feelings Towards Kennedy
Even though Vanderpump fired Kennedy for his comments and past behavior, she doesn’t hold any ill will towards him. She appeared on an episode of Watch What Happens Live With Andy Cohen in January 2019, and she explained that she has empathy for the DJ.
“One thing I have to say is there is another side to James Kennedy, and we do see he’s been incredibly supportive of his family financially,” Vanderpump said of Kennedy, as recorded by the Daily Dish. “Now in all that he’s done at SUR and with women, I stand against and that’s why I let him go, and also because of his drinking. But he does have this incredibly soft, compassionate side, and he’s really kind of stood up for his family.”
Vanderpump also opened up about Kennedy’s current girlfriend, Raquel Leviss. Kennedy and Leviss have been dating for more than four years, and Vanderpump had nothing but good things to say about her. During an October episode of her podcast, she said Leviss is the, “best thing that ever happened” to him and added that she’s enjoyed seeing her develop her own self over the years. “She’s a lot more confident,” Vanderpump explained. “She’s really good. When she has a point, she won’t back down. I adore her.”