The Real Reason Kourtney Kardashian Is Taking A Break From Keeping Up With The Kardashians
Stop the K-train, Kourtney Kardashian wants to get off. The eldest Kardashian sister sent shockwaves through the world of reality television in November 2019 when she revealed that she would be taking a step back from Keeping Up with the Kardashians. She dropped the bomb to Entertainment Tonight alongside sisters Kim and Khloe Kardashian, the latter of whom seemed to shrug the revelation off by suggesting that the show is like "a revolving door" with their family.
"We love Kourtney and we'll miss Kourtney and whatever she decides to do, but people come [and] people go all the time," the Good American co-founder elaborated, adding, "Kourtney might leave this week, [but] she'll be back."
Is that true, or is Khloe's confidence misplaced? The truth is, Kourtney has dropped a lot of hints about leaving the show over the past few years. She appears to have reached the end of her rope, and we think we know why. Here's the real reason she's taking a break from Keeping Up with the Kardashians.
KUWTK is all about the money for Kourtney Kardashian
If Kourtney Kardashian hates being on Keeping Up with the Kardashians so much, why didn't she quit before now? It's a question the raven-haired reality star answered herself during a 2018 episode of the E! series when the Kardashian sisters fell out big time over the family Christmas card. Kourtney turned up 40 minutes late to the shoot, which led to a nasty argument about her work ethic. According to Kim, Kourtney had no excuse for being so tardy, because she wasn't slammed with meetings like the rest of them.
"Maybe if you had a f***ing business that you were passionate about, then you'd know what it takes to run a f***ing business, but you don't," Kim told Kourtney. "So don't even act like you know what I'm talking about." An angry Kourtney let her guard down and revealed that she only turned up at all because she needed to get paid. "If I had enough money, I wouldn't work — I wouldn't do the show," she said (via Buzzfeed). "I would be a full-time mom. That's what I want to do."
Perhaps not coincidentally, in summer 2019, Kourtney launched her health and lifestyle website Poosh, which describes itself as "a curated experience and a destination for modern living." It's possible that Kourtney found that extra source of income she needed to wave goodbye to Keeping Up with the Kardashians and concentrate on bringing her kids up, and she has that now.
Kourtney Kardashian is fed up with being famous
Being a Kardashian most definitely has its perks, but according to Kourtney Kardashian, fame isn't everything. The Poosh founder appears to be getting pretty sick of life as a celebrity, and she blames Keeping Up with the Kardashians. Speaking with Paper in May 2019, Kourtney revealed just how "quickly" fame came for the family after they decided to create a reality show. "I never thought it was going to become this thing," she said, adding, "From when we shot the sizzle reel or whatever. It got green lit straight away."
She went on to fantasize about a life away from the cameras, and not for the first time. Kourtney has been telling people that she's tired of being famous for years, making no secret of the fact that living in the limelight has become increasingly tiresome. Speaking to Now back in 2014, the reality star revealed that fame has never been important to her. "I never really thought about fame as a kid, and even when we were talking about doing the show, I didn't really think about it," she said (via Digital Spy). "Sometimes I wish we weren't filming. I love being a mum and sometimes I just wish no-one knew who I was." It's a little late for that now, but some time out of the spotlight might be exactly what Kourtney needs.
Kourtney Kardashian would be 'happy' for KUWTK to end tomorrow
Keeping Up with the Kardashians was in the middle of filming its upcoming 18th season when Kourtney Kardashian told Entertainment Tonight that she wanted to focus her energy elsewhere (the KUWTK cameras were actually in the room filming the interview). But it seems like she's lost all interest in keeping the show going after so many years. When Paper asked Kourtney how she would feel if the cameras stopped rolling tomorrow, Kourtney said that she "would be very happy" about that. It's not just with journalists that she's expressed this view, either.
When asked on camera by Khloe Kardashian, "You would be happy if the show ended?," Kourtney replied, "Yeah, who cares?" The atmosphere has become toxic according to momager Kris Jenner, who complained that it was all getting "a little Mean Girls" for her liking. "As much as I love you, you fight a lot dirtier than you used to," Kris told her daughters. "You guys have gotta get back to the fact that we're just family."
Kris started working on new deals for all five of her girls after Season 16 of KUWTK saw a ratings spike thanks to the Tristan Thompson cheating scandal that played out on the show. But Kourtney's contract will likely need some reworking now that she's announced her intention to take a step back.
Kourtney Kardashian is 'ashamed' to be associated with her family
The fallout from the big Christmas card row continued during a tense phone call between Khloe and Kourtney Kardashian. The latter claimed that she just had "different values" than the rest of her famous family, and she threw some serious shade at the middle Kardashian sister. Kourtney said that she "didn't agree" with "who Kim was as a person," and then things started to get really personal. "We have a disgusting family," Kourtney told a shocked Khloe (via BuzzFeed). "I'm ashamed to be part of people like that, it's just gross. I'm not going to be filming with some f***ing c**t like Kim." Yikes! To be fair, Kim landed some blows of her own on Kourtney during this tense episode, calling her big sis the "least interesting to look at."
We know what you're thinking — all this drama over a Christmas card? The reality is, the festive photo shoot was just the straw that broke the camel's back for Kourtney. When she next came face to face with her sisters, the mother of three called them both out for being too preoccupied with making more money. "When you die and when I die, it doesn't matter how much money is in our bank accounts," she said. "It's about memories. But [money is more important] to you, and I don't give a f**k." Perhaps she'd be more concerned about her bank balance if there was a swear jar on set.
Kourtney Kardashian is tired of 'faking' her relationship with her sisters
The now infamous Christmas card bust up came to a head when Kourtney Kardashian dropped a major bombshell on her sisters — she's been faking her relationship with them. "I will move to a different state or a different country at some point, but now is not that time," Kourtney said (via BuzzFeed). "But I cannot wait for that day when I just don't have to have these fake relationships any more." A shocked Khloe Kardashian asked for clarification, and Kourtney confirmed that she was talking about her and Kim Kardashian. "I feel that it's forced," Kourtney added. This didn't go down well with Khloe, who had some stern words for her oldest sister. "If you feel you're forcing a relationship then you shouldn't have it in your life," she stated. "I mean, who knew that you were feeling that you're forcing relationships?"
This isn't the first time that Kourtney has expressed an interest in putting the family's hometown of Calabasas, Calif. in her rearview mirror. When she spoke to Paper in May 2019, the reluctant reality star mused, "I always say I want to move away someday and just be away from it all," she said. "Sail away. No one will ever see me again." Back in 2015 she even possibly suggested that she wanted to live on a farm some day, which is a spin-off we could totally get on board with.
Is traveling Kourtney Kardashian's new priority?
Kourtney Kardashian's quest to find a new place to live has taken her to some pretty awesome parts of the world. She hasn't been able to settle on one location just yet, but she enjoys the traveling aspect regardless. "I keep throwing up different places, but then I'll go there to visit and I'll be like, 'Nope, this isn't it, but glad I came,'" she told Paper. "We've just been to Finland. And I was like, 'Check, it's great for me to visit, but I'm not going to move there.' Maybe Norway. Switzerland? I've got a lot of ideas."
The eldest Kardashian has been concentrating on her Poosh travel content, uploading everything from packing tips to travel diaries about her jaunts across the globe. The trouble is, Kourtney's sisters aren't particularly thrilled about her rampant wanderlust. "I just think you guys aren't happy for me," Kourtney told her siblings during a 2018 episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians (via Us Weekly). "The show is more important. Maybe traveling isn't a priority to you, but it is to me."
In a testimonial shown later in the episode, Kim Kardashian revealed that she and Khloe Kardashian "want Kourtney to take trips," so long as they don't get in the way of KUWTK. "She can't commit to filming a season and sharing her life if she's not going to," Kim said. In other words, if you want to travel all the time, you're out.
Kourtney Kardashian was hesitant about doing KUWTK in the first place
According to Kris Jenner, Kourtney Kardashian was the only sister who wasn't thrilled about doing Keeping Up with the Kardashians. The savvy momager pitched the show to execs with the help of producer Ryan Seacrest, who knew his way around the network and believed that the Kardashian clan was a perfect fit for it. Jenner secretly organized everything, and landed the deal before any of them had even been consulted. After she got a call from Seacrest confirming that the pitch had been accepted, she gathered her family for dinner and broke the news.
"Kim and Khloe jumped up from their chairs, they were so happy," Kris revealed in her 2011 memoir Kris Jenner... And All Things Kardashian. "Kourtney was a little quiet because she was somewhat hesitant. I said: 'Nobody has to do it, but this is what I really, really want to do.' So eventually she said: 'OK, mom, I'll do it.'" Kourtney went along for the ride for the sake of her family, but she always maintained that she isn't made for a life in the spotlight. When half-sister Kylie Jenner confided that she felt as though she wasn't supposed to be famous during an episode of Keeping Up with the Kardashians (via Buzzfeed), Kourtney agreed that while she "can 'handle' the intrusion into her life, she 'doesn't give a s**t' about fame or what people think of her."
Life's too short for all that drama
Speaking with Entertainment Tonight about the real reason she's taking a break from Keeping Up with the Kardashians, Kourtney Kardashian suggested her exit was temporary, but that fans would definitely be seeing less of her going forward: "I just decided to spend more time as a mom and put more of my energy there."
During a prior appearance on The Real, Kourtney confirmed the persistent rumors about her leaving the show. "Yeah!" she admitted, adding, "At the current moment I'm happy and very into my blessings and feeling really good. But I definitely have my moments... 'cause, I mean, life is short." Later in the discussion, Kylie Jenner's billionaire status came up, and it turns out that the young makeup guru's meteoric rise actually made her older half-sister want to leave the family show even more. "I mean ... probably subconsciously it makes us feels like, you know, when's it enough?" Kourtney said. "I think that's a thing I always think to myself, 'When's it enough?' Because I don't like missing out on certain things, like doing my kids' homework or certain after school activities."
It seems like Kourtney is determined to be a mother first, reality star second, and nobody can blame her for that. She might well be the least interesting Kardashian (according to Kim), but we respect her decision, and her sisters are going to have to do the same.