Tamron Hall challenges Lisa Rinna on claims about TV conflict: 'No one's proud of selling their soul,' star says

Joey NolfiThu, February 26, 2026 at 4:11 PM UTC

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Tamron Hall challenges Lisa Rinna on airCredit: ABC

Talk show host Tamron Hall held actress and reality TV icon Lisa Rinna to the fire over on-air heat the Real Housewives and Traitors star has generated on the small screen.

Rinna appeared on the Tamron Hall show on Thursday to discuss her new book, You Better Believe I'm Going to Talk About It, which Hall said contains numerous dramatic revelations about Rinna's conflicts with people in her life. Upon returning from a commercial break, the show played a voiceover clip of Rinna reading a passage from the book, in which she addresses light regret about hurting feelings while drumming up drama during her tenure on The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills from seasons 4-12.

"I'm an actor, so I know what is needed to create drama on the show, yet you're still dealing with human beings. It hurts when you say something about someone, and vice versa. It's a very hard thing to process, even if it's a setup. At the end of the day, I never wanted to hurt anybody, and I didn't want to fight, but that's what the show was about: Women and conflict," Rinna said in the passage, to which Hall replied by challenging Rinna as she asked, "Going on that show was a choice. Why did you go on it?"

Rinna admitted that "at the time, I was as cold as a dead fish in my career. I was cold as ice," she said. "Trust me, I wasn't [in demand]. And I am a businesswoman, so I knew that Real Housewives was great real estate on television."

Lisa Rinna on 'Tamron Hall' showCredit: ABC

After she said that she "thought this could be good for business," Hall again pushed back on Rinna's assertion that she felt bad about hurting people amid various conflicts on the Bravo program.

"One might say the fires that started there? You had to know the house was hot. The franchise was built on conflict," Hall said, pointing out that Real Housewives of New Jersey alum Teresa Giudice made headlines all the way back in 2009 (four years before Rinna joined RHOBH season 4 in a supporting role) for almost flipping a table during a heated clash with cast member Danielle Staub. "You kind of know what you're walking into. I get, as you said, your career had slowed down, but what good was it to gain a man to lose his soul?"

Rinna replied, admitting that "no one's proud of selling their soul, but I think you have to acknowledge it and go, that's where I was at the time, I did it, I didn't know it would be quite as rough as it ended up being."

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"Well, I'm still here," Rinna continued. "I'm still here. How can I make the world a better place and how can I bring joy and have more fun?"

Hall finished the segment by pointing out that some of the revelations Rinna made in the book, in her estimation, will lead to fractured relationships with people she'll "never talk to again." Rinna agreed, telling Hall, "Probably not. I've tried. Everyone I talk about — just about — in here, I have tried to make amends, or I have made amends. There are some people in our lives, you've probably all come across it, where amends are not able to be made. So, what do you do about that, when you want to move on, but that other person is like, no?"

Despite lamenting elements of her past clashes on Housewives, Rinna further weathered drama during her tenure on The Traitors season 4, where she went toe-to-toe with Bachelor alum Colton Underwood, who targeted her at a later stage in the elimination-heavy gauntlet.

Lisa Rinna, Colton Underwood, Eric Nam, Monét X Change, and Candiace Dillard Bassett on 'The Traitors' season 4Credit: Euan Cherry/Peacock

Speculation arose among fans that some of Rinna's words to Underwood hinted at his controversial past, including when she referred to him as "a stalker" in a Jan. 23 Threads post. Many assumed the reference pointed to a restraining order filed against Underwood in 2020 by his ex, Cassie Randolph, who alleged at the time that Underwood placed a tracking device on her vehicle (the order was ultimately dropped).

"I knew nothing. But I am not here to do anything to hurt anyone or make it worse for someone, because I've had that happen for me, and it's really rough when social media is turning on you. And I didn't want to be part of ... even though, listen, if you ask me to be a Housewife, I'm going to come at you however I'm going to come at you. And guess what? He got what he asked for because I definitely showed up as Lisa Rinna, the Housewife. But I didn't want it to further put gasoline on the fire," Rinna later told Entertainment Weekly of the ordeal. "I'm fine with Colton. I knew nothing about his past. He was a great nemesis for me in the game, and we're all good. At the end of the day, it's a game. His past is his past. It doesn't have anything to do with me. So there it is."

The Traitors finale and reunion — featuring Rinna — streams tonight on Peacock.

on Entertainment Weekly

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