Spencer Pratt appeared last year in “Got to Get Out,” an eight-episode Hulu series about reality stars living in a mansion.
At the time, his home had just burned down, and he and wife Heidi Montag were taking whatever offers came their way. On the press tour, he was asked whether he would be interested in doing a show focused on their family. The short answer: of course.
“We’re at a place now, with having no house, whatever opportunities — like it’s yes, yes, yes,” Pratt explained to Entertainment Tonight last year. “It’s like the 2009, Kim K-level hustle.”
Pratt is now running for mayor of Los Angeles, and generating attention in a way he hasn’t since the early days of “The Hills” (2006-10), the MTV show that introduced him to America as “Heidi’s boyfriend.” In the process, he has tried to distance himself from reality TV, telling Fox 11 in March that, “The reality, pun intended, is that was from 20 years ago.”
But last week, TMZ reported that Pratt plans to turn his mayoral run into a show, and that the cameras would keep rolling even if he takes office. The report earned an unusually strong denial from Pratt’s publicist — “Absolutely false and you can confirm that on the record” — but in the days since, the statements out of Pratt’s camp have left some wiggle room.
“This is a non-starter as there is no signed contract,” they told the Hollywood Reporter. “Nothing has been pitched, nothing has been filmed, there is no contract or deal of any sort in existence. Cameras have not been rolling and there are no plans at all for cameras to film.”
That did not rule out the possibility of contracts, pitches and filming in the future. Last year, Pratt told Variety that he was developing a show with Hulu about his family’s recovery from the Palisades fire. That project is dead, sources say, but the life of a reality star is a constant hustle, and cameras and contracts are never too far in the background.
Any plans to keep filming once Pratt assumed office would run into conflict with the L.A. City Charter, which prohibits officeholders from receiving compensation for “outside activities.”
“You’re not supposed to have a second job,” said Jeffery Daar, a former president of the L.A. Ethics Commission. “People are electing you to a full-time job.”
Pratt’s company, Pratt Productions, collects revenue from both his and Montag’s activities. According to a financial interest form, the couple collected at least $10,000 last year from each of 42 clients, including Snap, TikTok, Tubi, Amazon and Airbnb.
In one such case, his “Hills” co-star Brody Jenner posted an ad on Instagram for Frida Balls, a brand of reinforced underwear for dads that is designed to defend them from being punched by toddlers.
“The family jewels deserve serious protection,” Jenner wrote. “Thanks to fridaballs I can keep them safe-no matter how many toddler shots to the crotch I take.”
In the comments, Pratt responded: “What hits worse: rewatching the show or a toddler kick to the balls? #fridadads.” (Frida Balls paid Pratt at least $10,000, according to the form, for his sponsorship work.)
Lucky Strike and the Beverly Center likewise paid at least $10,000 for the Pratt family to visit the bowling alley at the mall, an event which was photographed and written up in the Daily Mail. Other sponsors include McDonalds, Ryde Wellness Shots, Factor Meals and Vegamour, a hair regrowth product.
Though Pratt would be barred from taking such opportunities as mayor, Montag would be free to pursue them on her own. The TMZ report stated that Montag and the couple’s two children would be a “big part” of the show, though the outlet said that the focus, at least for now, is on winning.
Kate Aurthur contributed to this report.
