Vanderpump Rules' Kristen Doute reveals she's dating her podcast co-host

Vanderpump Rules alumna Kristen Doute confirmed she is dating podcast co-host Luke Broderick. This comes six months after she split from Alex Menache.

Former Vanderpump Rules star Kristen Doute confirmed she's dating her podcast co-host Luke Broderick. Kristen and Stacey Schroeder were fired from the Bravo series in June 2020. Two OG actors fired for past racially insensitive incidents. At the time of her firing, Kristen had just started a relationship with Alex Menarche. However, the two broke up in June this year. Now, Kristen and Luke move on.

Co-hosts confirm dating speculation on Dec. 21 episode of their podcast, "Sex, Love, and Other Matters That Matter". "All my friends who listened to our podcast were like, 'Yeah, that sounds obvious,'" admits Kristen, who doesn't miss Vanderpump Rules. However, she hesitated at first. "I'd love to be your guy," the 39-year-old told Luke, explaining, "I love you so much, but the thought of being someone else's girlfriend again puts me in a bind because I want to Be a wife and...mother." Referring to the end of her two-year relationship with Alex, Kristen added, "I'm tired of being a girlfriend for a few years and then letting the s-t fall apart." Vegans also have issues with Luke's love of hunting and fishing. She even suggested the 31-year-old create separate social media accounts for the hunt, hoping he would avoid the kind of scrutiny Vanderpump Rules faced. But despite those hesitations, Kristen made their romance official on Instagram after the podcast. She shared a photo of her with Luke at the wedding, writing, "not afraid to take risks and wear her heart on her sleeve."

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Kristen Doute Shades Ex Alex Amid New Romance

Elsewhere in the podcast episode, Kristen gushed that once She "no longer wanted to get out of her last relationship," and she went to Luke. The He's Making You Crazy author previously opened up about her difficult breakup from Alex to former co-star Scheana Shay. During an August appearance on the Schenanigans podcast, the t-shirt designer blasted her ex outright, revealing he dumped her and then blocked her. Kristen, who found Scheana's wedding "exciting," appeared to further cloud Alex in the comments on her Instagram post with Luke. When someone wrote that she was going to have "cuter kids with this one," Kristen replied, "I totally agree." She also liked the comment that dating Luke was a "clear escalation."

Throughout her years of reality TV, viewers saw Kristen struggle and her love life. Her long-term relationship with Tom Sandoval exploded amid the shocking revelation that she slept with Jax Taylor. Kristen accused Tom of having an affair with Ariana Madix and later tried to break them up. She bounced back disastrously from Tom with controversial DJ James Kennedy. Her codependent, on-and-off relationship with Brian Carter frustrated Stacy and Katie Maloney, whose friendship fell apart at one point.

While Kristen's romance with Luke will not be on-screen, major relationship changes with her friend and former co-star will. During this time, Lara Kent split from Randall Emmett, Raquel Lewis and James Kennedy's engagement ended, and Katie divorced Tom Schwartz. Raquel and Schwartz make out at Scheana's wedding, which irritates Katie. While the intimacy was shocking at first, fans later decided it was just a publicity stunt. Even before Kristen was fired, longtime viewers were complaining that the show felt overly produced, unlike its early, really messy days. Those complaints became louder in season 9, with the OG cast being missed by many. Fans will have to see if Vanderpump Rules season 10 brings the magic back when it premieres in 2023. ^More: Why Vanderpump Rules Use Season 10 to Reset

Sources: Sex, Love, and Other Matters That Matter/Podcast, Kristen Doute/Instagram