Five Massive Changes We Spotted In The Premiere Of 'The Hills'
Like how do they know Mischa?
After a long absence from our screens, The Hills has returned with a new season!
The premiere aired last night, and there were some pretty big changes to the show (excluding the known fact that Lauren Conrad and Kristin Cavallari are not in the cast).
The main cast includes Audrina, Whitney, Heidi, Spencer, Brody, Stephanie, Frankie and Mischa Barton, plus some extra familiar faces pop up along the way.
They Do Interviews Now
The Hills always occupied a strange space between reality TV and scripted drama. Somehow the cameras were always there for all the right moments, and the cast never acknowledged that they were filming a show.
Now they have added in cast interviews to help explain what is happening on the show. Yep just like the Kardashians and the Real Housewives, the cast of The Hills now sit in front of a camera and explain their feelings to a camera crew.
Mischa Barton Is There
Right, you all want to know how they have added Mischa Barton to the cast. Here’s how they explain it. In an interview, Mischa says that she can’t wait to reconnect with this group of friends she used to run around with. There is literally no evidence that any of these people were friends with Mischa at any point in their lives. Anyway. She then drives a convertible down the coast (just like Lauren) and meets up with Stephanie Pratt on a beach. Steph says they’ve been friends for ages. The two sit on the beach and eat fruit. Later, we see Audrina and Mischa getting ready together for Steph’s welcome home party. So it looks like she’s just officially part of the gang now.
They Reference Their Outside Lives
The Hills always pretended their cast weren’t rich and famous. (Although go back and watch some episodes in season two and three – you can sometimes hear the clicks of paparazzi cameras in the background).
That’s all out the window now. This time around, they showcase lots of different tabloid headlines about everyone’s various life dramas. One minor storyline in the episode is Mischa appearing on Heidi and Spencer’s podcast and talking about how she was bullied online by blogger Perez Hilton. Then we are left on a cliffhanger ending – Speidi have invited Perez to Stephanie’s welcome home party! What will happen when Mischa sees him!? So it looks like they will take any excuse to show us that their cast are still famous and relevant.
Everyone Has Kids
Before, everyone had vague fake relationships and definitely did not have children.
Now pretty much everyone has kids. Whitney, Audrina, Heidi and Spencer, Frankie and his yet to be seen wife. In fact Spencer and Frankie put the pressure on Brody to have kids during a boys night out. The only kid we’ve actually seen on screen so far is Heidi and Spencer's son Gunner.
Brody’s Wife Is The Villain
This actually isn’t that different to the past. Generally anyone Brody dated was painted in a bad light. This time around, his new wife (Kaitlynn Jenner – yes it is mentioned that she has the same name as Brody’s father Caitlyn Jenner) is painted as a nagging wife who yelled at Brody and made him sleep in the car.
Other interesting points:
- The show opens with Whitney and Heidi visiting Audrina at her new home. This is Whitney’s only appearance in the episode. In case you've forgotten, this trio made up three of the four OG cast members - but they were mainly connected to each other via Lauren.
- Audrina is now divorced from her ex-husband Corey Bohan. He is an Australian BMX rider who actually appeared in several episodes of The Hills. He does not get portrayed well. Audrina never says his name, she just calls him "my ex".
- Justin Bobby is also back, and everyone wants him and Audrina to get back together. They go on a dinner date, and later Justin goes surfing with Brody.
- Everyone clearly hasn’t seen each other for years. No one was invited to Brody’s wedding. Stephanie has been living in London, Audrina has been living outside LA, Heidi and Spencer have retreated from public life and spend all their time with their kid. These people are not really still friends.
- Brandon Thomas Lee is another new cast member, he is supposedly good friends with Brody. More importantly, he is the son of Tommy Lee and Pamela Anderson. Pamela actually shows up in the episode to bless his house with burning sage.
And that's it! What a premiere. Can't wait for next week.
If you'd like to watch The Hills: New Beginnings online, you'll need to sign up to Foxtel Now.
Keep up with your favourite radio shows with the Hit app on iOS and Android!