Tragic Details About Christine Quinn

Please note: This article contains references to postpartum depression, abusive language, and sexual misconduct.

As Christine Quinn's net worth perfectly reflects, the reality star's rise to riches is like living a dream come true. "My career was always about manifestation," she told People. "I wanted to be in these beautiful houses so desperately, and I knew, one day, I would live in one." Quinn lives with her tech entrepreneur husband, Christian Richard, and their son, Christian Georges Dumontet, in this idyllic world that she manifested. Naturally, we know all about it thanks to her leading role on Netflix's "Selling Sunset." The fashion icon is renowned for her entertaining role as the show's ice queen, a Gothic princess who doesn't bite her tongue. 

Does Quinn mind being the baddie? Absolutely not. On the red carpet of the People's Choice Awards in 2021, E! News correspondent Laverne Cox joked that the star carries the show, thanks to the never ending drama. "Yeah, I live for it," she replied. "I love being the villain and I wouldn't have it any other way." So no complaints from that department.

The star may rock a yellow Lamborghini and a small chair as a purse accessory, but it hasn't been all sparkles and couture since the beginning for this agent. While she might excel at playing the wicked witch of real estate on reality television, she appears to be anything but that in real life. As tragic details about Quinn prove, she had some tough moments as a kid and faced some stressful periods as an adult, too.

While Christine Quinn looks like she could run the universe, her parents kept her as removed and protected from the world as possible. "My childhood ... was very sheltered," she said on the "Call Her Daddy" podcast. "... They were doing their best job to protect me, but it felt suffocating to me." In light of this, Quinn ran away from home at 17, choosing a two hour window when her parents were at Costco to make her escape.

Speaking to The Guardian, the star explained that her Catholic upbringing in Texas was so strict that even television was off-limits. For a hit of culture, she'd watch classics like "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" at her grandma's house. "I grew up in a very restrictive environment. I didn't even know what sex was until I was 16," she said. "... I needed freedom in order to survive."

On "Call Her Daddy," Quinn noted that amongst the long list of things that were restricted at home were fast food and soda. "Now, all I drink is Red Bull, Dr. Pepper, [and] soda," she joked. Luckily, Quinn explained that she's close with her parents now and that motherhood really changed that for her. "They just came from a place of wanting to protect me and wanting to make sure that I was okay," she said of her parents. "Looking back, maybe it was for the best, but I had to leave when I had to leave."

Christine Quinn ended up attending an alternative high school after her mother tried to homeschool her. On "Call Her Daddy," she reflected that the school felt like a punishment. On reflection, she realized it was a blessing because she got to hang out with kids who moved to the beat of their own drums. Some students also faced serious challenges including being sex trafficked and selling drugs. Quinn said that the unconventional experience taught her to be savvier. "It's something that shaped me because now I have the hustle," she said. "Now I have the street smarts." 

But it wasn't all great. Quinn wound up getting arrested. "One day someone gave me a little birthday surprise, and it happened to be marijuana," she told People. "Another kid saw them give it to me, and I got called into the principal's office and the principal had a choice. She said, 'I'm going to think about whether I'm going to suspend you or call the police right now.' And she chose to call the police." Quinn said that she got handcuffed and sent to jail on her birthday. Her parents didn't bail her out for four days in the hopes that the experience would make an impact. It certainly did. "It made me really think, like, okay — one screw up, one little mess really can turn my life around. It certainly put me in check at a really young age," she said.

As a young kid, Christine Quinn's life was unsettled when her mother was diagnosed with cancer. "I had a mother who was extremely ill — she got cancer for the first time when she was 40 and a second time a year later, and since then has had multiple health issues," she told Vogue in 2020.

On the "Call Her Daddy" podcast, the star explained that her mom had experienced illness throughout Quinn's life. It impacted the star's childhood, primarily her education, as she dropped out of school to spend more time with her mom. "We weren't sure what her health situation was and how long she was going to make it," Quinn said. "She had a pulmonary embolism at one point, so we were in the hospital saying goodbye to her." The "Selling Sunset" star said that she was 15 when this happened and couldn't process what the future of her family would look like. It was the reason why Quinn was homeschooled and later sent to an alternative school.

The stressful home situation also meant that Quinn didn't get a normal childhood. She said that she was never allowed to hang out with friends or go to the movies. "I was like Rapunzel," she told the podcast and added that she really resented her parents for it at the time. "It was hard for me to understand until I got older and realized it came from a place of love."

Speaking to Page Six, Christine Quinn revealed that her mom's health issues have included a double mastectomy, Lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, and Raynaud's phenomenon, where blood flow to appendages can be severely restricted or interrupted altogether. The star added that her mother has low mobility and limited movement in her hands. Per the outlet, in July 2020, Christine Quinn's mother also suffered a heart attack in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

Quinn said that right before her wedding to Christian Richard, her mother had to have heart surgery. According to People, the couple married in December 2019, in a ceremony that was featured on "Selling Sunset" and did not disappoint. "We wanted to get married in December to start off the New Year [as husband and wife]," Quinn told People. "And a winter wonderland theme with a wicked twist is memorable forever." Unfortunately, her mother's illness was a tough moment for such a happy time.

So when Quinn's mother suffered a heart attack months later, the reality star told Page Six how challenging it was with the added restrictions during the pandemic. "It's just really hard because no one is allowed to visit," she said. "My dad and my sister can't even visit ... they won't let anyone in." As the realtor told The Times, doctors had warned Quinn and her family that her mom wasn't going to make it. "We were saying goodbye to her," she said, "... But she made it through."

Christine Quinn had a terrifying experience giving birth to her son, Christian, whom she shares with her husband, Christian Richard. Per People. the realtor gave birth on May 15, 2021, and while she made early motherhood look like a cinch, the delivery was anything but.

On the "Call Her Daddy" podcast, Quinn said, "Motherhood's been great but you know, my birth was really traumatic." The "Selling Sunset" star explained that she was put into a horrifying situation after requiring an emergency C-section. "The doctors came to my husband and said, you need to choose one right now because we're not sure if we can ... save both." Quinn added that her husband told them they had to save both his wife and his baby. "The transition has been great and I love being a mother but it made me realize the things that are important in life," the star said, reflecting on the close call. "We only have time in the world and that time is so valuable." 

Quinn also alleged that "Selling Sunset" producers pushed her to get back on set. The explosive season 4 finale subsequently took place just one week after she welcomed her son — at the time she was also dealing with postpartum depression. The less than lovely season climax showed the ladies of The Oppenheim Group collectively confronting the show's villain about her behavior. Quinn explained, "[They were] just piling on ... they showed no sympathy at all."

If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, please contact the Crisis Text Line by texting HOME to 741741, call the National Alliance on Mental Illness helpline at 1-800-950-NAMI (6264), or visit the National Institute of Mental Health website.

Despite her eclectic education, or perhaps because of it, Christine Quinn never graduated high school. She kept this a secret until her interview with Vogue in 2020, when she finally aired her secret. "I'm really insecure about it," Quinn said. "The reason I'm sharing this now is that I want people to know that there are people out there who can't afford education or who, like me, weren't able to finish school." 

She went on to say that she wanted to speak up so that people don't fall prey to the faulty thinking that the only way one can achieve is through education. "We should take the pressure off young people and those who can't get an education—for whatever reason—and tell them, 'Hey, it will be okay. You don't have to follow the same path as everyone else," she said. "There are always other options."

On "Call Her Daddy," Quinn spoke about how pivotal the Vogue interview was, explaining that authenticity is what's most important to her. So when the interviewer was praising Quinn for her many successes, she said she felt like she was living a lie. "The emotions just started flooding out of me," she said and shared that she started crying during the interview. What previously had only been known by her family and her husband became public knowledge. "I have an eighth-grade education," she admitted. Quinn doesn't have a GED but she has still created the life of her dreams.

Christine Quinn didn't hold back when speaking about producer Adam DiVello, famous for producing and writing shows like "Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County," "The Hills," and, of course, "Selling Sunset." When speaking on "Call Her Daddy," the star spoke about how difficult it was working with the reality television mogul. Quinn suggested that male-dominated production teams often took to manipulating and harassing young female stars in a bid to achieve salacious TV scenes. She further accused DiVello of consciously making Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt look unhinged on "The Hills," when he was an executive producer on the hit show. 

Suggesting that multiple people have filed complaints against him for his behavior, she alleged, "He actually told me to go fall down the stairs and kill myself at one point." Per Quinn's accusation, he did so because she got too honest with him. In a final blow, the realtor alleged that DiVello has had sexual misconduct claims filed against him. As a result, the producer purportedly isn't allowed to be near the women of The Oppenheim Group. As of June 2022, DiVello hasn't responded to the accusations. 

Following Quinn's allegations, Perez Hilton jumped on Twitter to ask if Netflix should fire DiVello in light of these numerous complaints. Pratt actually responded and left a "100%" emoji. Clearly, "The Hills" alum is in agreement with Quinn, who mentioned that Montag had filed a complaint against the producer during production on the reality show.

Christine Quinn might not mind being the villain of "Selling Sunset," but she regardless seemed to find the role limiting. On "Call Her Daddy," Quinn said that production pitched the show as a group of close-knit women working in real estate. Of course, it didn't quite turn out that way. While she understood that she was depicting a character, the star said of herself, "There [are] definitely two sides of Christine for sure. There's the one you see on TV and there's the one right now." However, she claimed that other cast members weren't always able to disconnect from their persona after a scene.

Quinn admitted that production told her that she would be the villain, to which she agreed. However, the star claimed that production took it a step further, altering and manipulating storylines to amp up the tension. "I'm being myself," she promised. "I have fun with it. I say the things I normally would in real life. I am funny and silly and goofy but you only see a small percentage of that because villains can't be relatable." She said that a lot of who she is winds up on the editing room floor.

Speaking to Variety, executive producer Adam DiVello suggested his production team is drawn to authenticity. "[T]he ones we gravitate toward are the ones being themselves," he said of who he chooses for reality TV. "If I feel like someone is being artificial we steer clear of them."

Christine Quinn claimed that parts of her personality got cut from "Selling Sunset." Likewise, some of these edits purportedly led to misleading storylines about her. That includes, for instance, the iconic episode where she allegedly didn't have the keys to one of her listings, prompting a fight between her and co-star Heather Rae El Moussa. She told "Call Her Daddy" that she assumed viewers would see past some of the phony storylines but said that some don't. "It's all fun and games," she began. "I'm all down to play ball in the fake storyline world and make myself look like a fool like I don't have the keys to my own listings when permits were pulled two weeks prior." 

The star also corrected the storyline that Quinn bribed a client for $5,000 in order to steal that person away from co-star Emma Hernan. "Oh, and the $5000 storyline," Quinn told Us Weekly. "Please, like, they think I'm poor? If you are worried about $5,000 I just can't." 

Quinn took the fake storyline seriously. On "Call Her Daddy," she pointed out that the other agents were accusing her of criminal misconduct. "That draws the line for me," she said, "because that's not stuff I participate in." When asked if it worried her in terms of her career, the "Selling Sunset" realtor laughed and said no. "People are smart," she said again and again. Clearly, she trusts her audience.

A major theme in Christine Quinn's narrative during later seasons of "Selling Sunset" was her feud with Emma Hernan and their diverging stories about what happened with a man they both previously dated, Peter Cornell. Quinn said that the experience of catching Cornell with Hernan was one of the most horrifying experiences of her life when she dished on "Call Her Daddy."

The star explained that her then-beau had left in the morning, claiming he had to meet his gardeners. When she was out later, catching up with a friend, she spotted him holding hands with Hernan. "I was in complete shock," she said. Quinn admitted that she approached her "Selling Sunset" co-star at the time and told her to get in touch for receipts that she and Cornell had been dating. The "How to Be as Boss B*tch" author further suggested her biggest beef was that Hernan acted as if she had never heard of Quinn when she joined the cast of "Selling Sunset." 

Meanwhile, Hernan still holds her ground that despite Quinn's insistence that it happened, there was no engagement between Cornell and her co-star. The empanada entrepreneur told ET that she told Cornell about this alleged engagement. "It was mind-blowing to him," she said. Despite being close friends, Hernan also denied rumors that she and Cornell got back together. She accused Quinn of being behind the gossip, accusing her of taking pictures of the two and selling them to tabloids. 

In 2022, Christine Quinn left The Oppenheim Group to focus on her own brokerage. Created with her husband, Christian Richard, the RealOpen is a crypto brokerage, and the first of its kind, according to Forbes. Contrary to what the drama of reality TV would have us believe, one of her major reasons for leaving the company was that she felt The Oppenheim Group wasn't forward-thinking enough.

"A lot of brokerages are very wary about accepting crypto because they don't understand the inner workings of it, so that's why it's very difficult for agents to do these transactions," she told the outlet. "A) the brokers don't know anything about crypto; B) don't know how to do it, and C) don't understand how reliable and how safe it actually is. The process that RealOpen uses is absolutely reliable and fool-proof."

On "Call Her Daddy," Quinn said that even though she's not at The O Group anymore, she hasn't ruled out appearing on season 6 of "Selling Sunset." Though producers have reached out to her, she's apparently still upset by the show making her look foolish instead of showing her starting her own brokerage. Quinn said her dream is to have her own show on Hulu with a group of other agents. She may not be done with reality TV, but she is definitely done with The Oppenheim Group. Speaking about leaving, Quinn reflected, "That's when the toxicity was cut out of my life." Good riddance!