A Look At The Romance Rumors Between Kim Zolciak & Chet Hanks

Kim Zolciak may be in the midst of her messy divorce from Kroy Biermann, but it seems her latest reality TV project has served as a decent distraction. And no, we're not talking about the production of "The Surreal Life" itself. According to sources involved in the show, she and co-star Chet Hanks got pretty cozy while filming. 

News of Zolciak and Chet featuring on "The Surreal Life" first broke when MTV shared a press release in mid-September 2023. Production began not long after — unfortunate timing for Zolciak, who ended up missing a court appearance because of the filming schedule. However, divorce drama aside, she's said to have had a pretty good time on location, largely thanks to Chet. 

Speaking to Us Weekly, an insider revealed that the "Real Housewives of Atlanta" alum had grown close with the son of Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson. Though the source added that nothing had happened between them — just months prior, Page Six published photos of Chet looking very loved-up with girlfriend Melissa Maysing — they did also say that there seemed to be a mutual attraction. Shooting for the reality show has since wrapped, meaning fans are likely to have to wait until it airs in early 2024 to see what really went down between the two. However, Zolciak has certainly dropped hints that there was at least some truth to the rumors in the meantime. 

Soon after "The Surreal Life" wrapped filming, Kim Zolciak and daughter Brielle Biermann took a trip to Mexico. Upon their return, rumors about Zolciak's flirtation with Chet Hanks had started doing the rounds — and a paparazzo was quick to ask the "Don't Be Tardy" star about it as they waited to depart from LAX.

As seen in the video published by MailOnline, despite staying mum about everything else she'd been asked, as soon as Zolciak was questioned about Hanks, she struggled to hold back a smile. Granted, she attempted to hide her face at first. However, the speculation was all but confirmed when Biermann was asked for her thoughts on the matter. After a brief, sassy eye-roll and hair flip, Zolciak's daughter also broke into an awkward smile. She then joked that her family didn't know the controversial actor. Zolciak's response? An almost mirrored blush and awkward laugh. The two then tried to change the subject, with Biermann pointing out that more serious things were happening in the world, and Zolciak telling her it was time to give up vaping. 

As for Hanks, he's yet to comment on the situation. However, both he and Zolciak follow each other on Instagram. Biermann only follows her mom, which isn't exactly surprising. After all, as she told the photographer, she doesn't know Hanks. 

Kim Zolciak and Chet Hanks may be following each other on social media, but don't expect to find any clues there. Neither of them has liked or commented on the others' posts. 

While there's certainly still time for that to change, there's a decent chance we'll have to take Brielle Biermann's advice, to watch the reality series and "figure it out in February." However, at least at the time of writing, all signs point to their flirtation being a brief distraction and nothing more. For starters, asked if she had any concerns about dating someone 11 years her junior, Zolciak quipped that while she had no doubts she would get back into the dating scene at some point, for the time being, the very thought of seeing anyone new was the furthest thing from her mind.

As fans of Zolciak will also be aware, she has attempted to have her divorce dismissed. Per TMZ, court documents show that she claimed to have hooked up with her husband a number of times since he filed for divorce the second time (after, y'know, they pulled the plug on the first one). Unfortunately for the hopeful Zolciak, TMZ has subsequently reported that in legal filings of his own, Kroy Biermann has maintained that he wants to split. Perhaps flirting with Hanks really has just been a distraction. If anyone would want to have their mind taken off their real life, it would be Zolciak.