Following on the heels on last week's USA Today interview comments in which she stated that Kimberly Stewart would replace previous co-star Nicole Richie on the next season of her The Simple Life Fox series, Paris Hilton has issued a statement that confirms the longstanding rumors that the former gal pals are no longer friends.
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While Hilton wouldn't comment on the alleged cause of the rift, she did tell USA Today that "I don't want to be fake" by filming additional The Simple Life episodes that would continue to present the twosome as close friends. Richie has reportedly had no comment on the Hilton's statement, with media calls to her spokesperson going unreturned.
Fox also declined to comment on the matter, standing by last week's statement that they "are currently discussing internally the creative direction of the next season of The Simple Life." "We are huge fans of both Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie and look forward to solidifying our plans for the next installment of this fantastic franchise in the very near future."
According to the New York Daily News, Hilton's public naming of Stewart as the show's new co-star appears to have been a premature announcement intended to force the network to accept Stewart (a lifelong friend) as Nicole's replacement. "Fox haven't yet said 'yes' to Kim, but the show makes so much money that Paris is likely to win this one," an inside source told the Daily News.
As for what caused the pair's final fallout, numerous rumors are abound, but the most persistent one is that Paris suspects that Nicole was responsible for a viewing party incident in which Paris' One Night In Paris sex tape was shown. According to reports, younger Hilton sister Nicky had hosted a February viewing party for Paris' Saturday Night Live hosting gig, however when the crowd gathered to watch a tape of the show, rather than seeing the NBC comedy show, footage of the sex tape appeared onscreen.
