‘The Simple Life’ Ended Because It Wasn’t As Dramatic As Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie’s Real Lives
Long before Keeping Up with The Kardashians ruled television, there was The Simple Life. The show featured then besties Nicole Richie and heiress Paris Hilton.
While they seemed to be on top of the world with their friendship and reality show, both things finally came to a close, and everything went quiet. The show that aired on Fox (then E!) ended after five years on-air, and fans couldn’t stop wondering why. Sources claim that the show ended because the two besties had a dramatic real-life which never made it to TV.
‘The Simple Life’ was conceived in a comedy department
The Simple Life followed heiress and socialite Hilton and her friend Richie doing things that can be regarded as “simple,” such as working as interns and spending some time on a farm. For the show’s premise, the rich spoilt girls are asked to give up all their credit cards, money, and cell phones and immerse themselves in what the showrunners deemed “the simple life.”
However, as the show progresses and the girls get a reality check, they realize that everything is not as simple as they think.
The plot for the show was conceived in Fox’s comedy department. The executives at the department were looking for a new way to bring comedy to their viewers. Therefore, they thought that the best way to do that is to reimagine the 1960s sitcoms that were the “simplest and cleanest” and do them for real.
The execs even debated about relocating an entire family from New York society to the farm and follow them around as they tried to live without the luxuries they were used to. During that time, Hilton was meeting with the studio’s casting department.
After they met her, they were enamored and immediately brought her on board. The initial duo was to be that of Hilton and her sister Nicky. However, Nicky was shy and opted out. Hilton then asked her close friends, but they all declined, leading Hilton to choose Nicole.
The two socialites had a falling out and reunion
Hilton and Richie grew up pretty much in the same circles. Richie is famed singer and producer Lionel Richie’s daughter, while Hilton is an heiress to the Hilton chain hotels. Therefore, it came as no shock when the two high profile socialites ended up starring in their reality show.
However, in the middle of their show, the two friends suddenly went from best friends who gave the world the phrase ‘That’s Hot’ to being enemies. In 2005, tabloids reported that the two fell out after Hilton failed to invite Richie to her SNL hosting gig.
Although this was a rumor, it didn’t quench the apparent feud between the two friends. Hilton then announced that Kimberly Stewart would be taking Richie’s place on The Simple Life. However, the two friends found their way back to each other and admitted that they didn’t know why they were feuding. Nowadays, the two besties keep in touch and have even been spotted sharing laughs on Instagram.
‘The Simple Life’ ended because it wasn’t as dramatic as the cast’s real lives
The Simple Life was without a doubt a hit, but in 2007, E! announced that it wouldn’t be picking the show up for another season. The show ended because the famous BFFs had DUIs in 2006 and 2007. Hilton was arrested for driving under the influence in 2006. She was arrested again in 2007 for driving with a suspended license.
Richie also suffered the same fate when she too was picked up for driving with an expired license. Hilton got 45 days of jail time but spent less than a week in jail, finishing her sentence at home. Richie’s charge cost her four days in prison, a $2,048 fine, and a three-year probation.
The network executives decided that the pair had far more dramatic lives than what the show was about, leading to its cancellation in July 2007.
