‘I’ve Had 20 Years Of People B–ching About Something I’ve Been Doing’: Kristin Cavallari Talks Getting Painted A Reality Villain Amidst Her New Age-Gap Romance

Back in 2004, MTV introduced TV viewers to the teenage love triangle of Lauren Conrad, Stephen Colletti and Kristin Cavallari on the reality show Laguna Beach (available to stream on one of the best streaming services , Paramount+). Cavallari was portrayed as the villain of the series — the obstacle standing in the way of the trope that was LC and Colletti’s friends-to-lovers story. Fast-forward 20 years, and the now-mom of three is still facing backlash for her dating life. She recently got candid about her age-gap relationship and the people who are “bitching” about it.

Kristin Cavallari, 37, and TikToker Mark Estes, 24, went public with their relationship in February and immediately were hit with criticism over their 13-year age difference. However, Cavallari told Bustle that it’s nothing she hasn’t heard before. What has changed over the past couple of decades, though, is her attitude toward it. She said:

It’s wild to think that Kristin Cavallari was just 17 years old when she filmed Laguna Beach — for which she got paid a bafflingly low $2,000 — so it must be incredibly freeing after 20 years to finally stop caring about other people’s opinions on her love life. Because it hasn’t just been those two. Following Laguna Beach , Cavallari leaned into the bad girl role on its spinoff The Hills , where she dated Kardashian stepbrother Brody Jenner. She later married NFL quarterback Jay Cutler, with that relationship being featured on her E! reality show Very Cavallari .

Maybe because she’s no longer in front of the camera, the Uncommon James boss isn’t worried about fans’ opinion of her personal life or the optics of it. The people who know her in real life, she said, are supportive of her and Mark Estes’ relationship. Cavallari continued:

She’s been open in the past about how devastating it was to be painted as a villain at such a young age, but Kristin Cavallari is grateful for where her journey has taken her. She pointed out that as a completely independent 37-year-old woman, she should be able to date whoever makes her happy, saying:

Despite her critics, Kristin Cavallari seems to be very happy with her TikToker, and that’s especially nice to hear after her past relationship left her so “ unhappy and stressed out ” that it affected her health.

If you want to relive Kristin Cavallari’s villain era, both Laguna Beach and The Hills are available to stream with a Paramount+ subscription , and be sure to see what’s coming soon with our 2024 TV schedule .