10 bizarre rules the Kardashian clan must follow when filming (and why)
In 2007, a Los Angeles-based family’s unvarnished docuseries launched on the American cable channel E!—in turn changing reality TV, female body image, social media, and the economy of celebrity forever. But even the stars of the mega-franchise have some secret rules they need to live by in order to make sure that the show glides along as smoothly as Kim’s treasured KKW contour stick.
Here are ten rules the Kardashians have no choice but to follow when filming, and why.
10. Literally anyone who gets near a Kardashian has to sign an NDA
Back when Blac Chyna sued her ex Rob Kardashian in October 2017, after the pair’s split three months prior, accusing him of sharing private images of her genitals, buttocks, and nipples to his nine million Instagram followers at the time as “revenge porn,” BuzzFeed News reported that ABC News received a photo of the non-disclosure agreement (NDA) Chyna signed in 2016.
An NDA is a legally binding contract that establishes a confidential relationship. The party or parties signing the document agree that sensitive information they may obtain will not be made available to any others. In simpler terms, it’s a confidentiality agreement.
In the document Chyna signed, she agreed “not to disclose anything about anyone in the Kardashian family.” This was further confirmed in 2019 by an anonymous source who spoke to celebrity and entertainment magazine Who, claiming that Kim Kardashian specifically is so “paranoid” about keeping her personal life in check that “she’s taken to forcing girlfriends into signing [NDAs] before even agreeing to go on coffee dates with them.”
While this specific claim should probably be taken with a pinch of salt, it’s no surprise why, as one of the most famous persons in the world, she would wish to preserve her private life, well, private. In fact, Kardashian herself confirmed it on Twitter while live-tweeting an episode of Keeping Up With The Kardashians (KUWTK), writing: “Btw NDA’S for all!!!! #KUWTK.”
Btw NDA’S for all!!!! #KUWTK
— Kim Kardashian (@KimKardashian) September 23, 2019
9. Kris Jenner asks that Kylie and Kendall have weekly manicures
In a 2017 interview with ELLE, when asked about her “extreme nails” and how she deals with their length, Kylie responded, “I get them done once a week, which isn’t normal.” Kendall, who was also involved in the interview, then added that “[Kris] would make us do it. She would have a nail artist come to the house once a week and she would make us get our nails done. She was like ‘You are never going to look like you’re not put together.’ So we were always getting them done.”
Although Kendall went on to claim that she only gets her nails done for photoshoots, Kylie admitted to taking her momager’s advice. Classic favourite child behaviour.
8. The exterior of their homes can’t be filmed
Well, at least not all of it. In 2014, Kim revealed that she once had to film a KUWTK episode in a “fake house,” further sharing that “when we film inside, that’s obviously our real home,” but that the exterior was altered for “safety reasons.”
“My old home in Beverly Hills was really my home and I would get people showing up at all hours ringing my gate and had to call the police on several occasions. [There’d be] people hopping the gate and scaring me—it was so unsafe. The Hollywood star tours would stop by too, [because] they recognised my home from our show.”
That being said, we all know that the interior of their houses are completely legit.
7. Kris Jenner has the final say on what gets aired
Cucumbergate—need I say more? In 2017, Kris admitted to The Hollywood Reporter that she has in the past deleted footage she found unflattering. “I mean, believe me, I’m not going to lie, there’s been times when I’ve walked away from the camera and I’ve got a big bump in my hair and I’m like ‘Take that out, my hair looks like shit.’ I’m too vain to leave really ugly, ugly angles in,” she told the publication.
Just like it’s understandable why Kim wants to shield what’s left of her private life as much as possible, it’s also not surprising why Kris has the final say on what gets aired. I mean, she is the mom-in-chief after all.
And just like many believed Kendall was privileged enough to not know how to cut a cucumber properly, others had another theory, one that involved Kris already seeing the viral potential of the model’s pathetic attempt at making herself a snack.
Keeping the fact that Kris has ultimate power over what ends up on our screens, I would probably tilt more towards the latter theory, if you know what I mean…
6. Kanye West never had to film, only when he wanted to
Okay, so this one is slightly obvious—since when does Ye follow any rules? Before the couple’s messy divorce, Kim told The Hollywood Reporter that the rapper wasn’t too keen on filming. “Kanye was like, ‘I’m not a part of the show. That’s not what I do. I have my own career and life,’” she explained.
“He’ll really surprise you though. He’ll be like, ‘I’m not filming’ and then randomly show up. But I will get [the footage] and show him.” Even though Ye didn’t make many apparitions on KUWTK and The Kardashians, when it comes to the former, Adam Stotsky from E! shared with The New York Times that “[Kanye’s] a real creative force, clearly, and had thoughts on marketing, thoughts on the presentation of the show, on the opening title sequence.”
5. Yes, they save the drama for when cameras are around
Although rumours always thrive online—even the mighty Kardashians can’t do much about that—many viewers didn’t hear the full details of Kim’s Paris robbery, Tristan Thompson’s cheating scandals, or Kim and Ye’s divorce until they aired on the show.
After all, it’s all about getting those ratings, but also about how the timing of the drama is essential to the reality show’s success.
4. They also have social media rules to follow
Again, are we really surprised here? Following Kim’s robbery, the entire family understandably increased their security. In an interview with The Hollywood Reporter where Kendall and Kim discussed how difficult it was to be open about it on camera, the model told her sister: “Your situation was a scare for all of us.”
Kim went on to share that she tightened the restraints on her social media, even when filming with a large team. “It really changed our lives. This extra layer of security needed to happen. On social media, I’ll never post something where I’m at home unless I know there’s four to six [security guards]. We know when we’re filming, it doesn’t air until months later, so we can share that and be free and always be who we are,” the business mogul said.
3. Khloé’s daughter isn’t allowed to watch the show
When Khloé had her daughter True in 2018, she took to Twitter to address fan inquiries about her baby and provided a complete update in a post titled “All My Hopes for My Daughter.” In it, she included the revelation that she won’t let her daughter watch the infamous reality series until she’s 13.
“My child will be 13 when they watch their first episode of KUWTK,” Khloé wrote. However, she seems to have since changed her mind about this rule, because she recently shared a video of her daughter sitting down to watch an episode that discussed Thompson’s cheating scandal—awkward.
2. Kim is the production team’s favourite Kardashian
“She has remained the same since day one and the richer she got, the better she started treating everyone,” a source once revealed to OK! Magazine, according to YourTango. That being said, it’s also been revealed that Khloé is the one that keeps the banter coming, making the atmosphere less tense. “She’s really fun to work with,” the source continued. “She loves to get drunk and shoot because it makes her open up [and be less] self-conscious.” Same girl, same.
1. Kylie is a real diva
Granted, this info was from her appearance on The Ellen DeGeneres Show way back in November 2015, but it gives people a good idea of what Kylie is like with the crew on set. At the time, the Mirror reported that the young celebrity’s behaviour “wasn’t pretty” behind the scenes.
The tabloid also went on to add that Kylie was almost as bad as Kim whenever she came on the show. I thought Kim was lovely? Kylie had demanded a long list of things, among them was her own personal “glam squad,” two dressing rooms, and she “insisted that she have two VIP parking spots, because she did not want to walk from the parking structure to the studio, which is less than a block away.”
Take it all with a pinch of salt, heh?
