A Breakdown of the Drama Between “Selling Sunset” Stars Chrishell Stause and Amanza Smith

Smith joined the “Selling Sunset” cast during the show’s second season, which, according to Heather Rae El Moussa, began filming in the summer of 2019 before it aired on Netflix in May 2020, per House Beautiful. While plenty of drama happened throughout the season, Stause and Smith appeared to develop a real friendship off screen.

The pair frequently did press together and even hung out on their own time. For example, in May 2020, Stause shared a photo of her and Smith helping their castmate Mary Fitzgerald pick out her wedding dress. Stause captioned the photo, “Love you ladies!” and made sure to tag Smith in her post.

That August, Stause and Smith also celebrated the premiere of the show’s third season by going on a fun boat trip with the rest of the “Selling Sunset” women. Since then, the pair’s friendship only appeared to grow stronger as they returned for more seasons of the show.

While filming the sixth season of “Selling Sunset,” Stause shaded one of her castmates on her Instagram Stories by accusing them of being desperate for attention. “The thirst for camera time on season 6 is REAL. Wow. That was insanity,” Stause wrote, according to Us Weekly. “But also SO transparent. Get your 15mins girl but leave my business out of it ?.”

Stause hinted the drama involved a new cast member by saying she was initially “excited” to work alongside them this season before things went south. “I hate fake ?. If you want camera time – JUST SAY THAT. I would have helped you get the right angle. But don’t try to come for people I love or my business when you were added and I was there to hype you up, excited for you,” she continued. Although she didn’t call out her cast member by name, the latest season of “Selling Sunset” added Nicole Young and Bre Tiesi to the mix.

The real estate agent ended her message by telling fans that they’re “smart” and would figure out who she was talking about when “Selling Sunset” returned for its sixth season.

When “Selling Sunset” returned to Netflix on May 19, it became clear Stause was talking about Young. During the sixth season, Young accused Stause of taking credit for her past listings, and Stause responded by saying Young was “out to get [her].” At one point during the show, Stause also accused Young of being on drugs.

Since their drama went public, sources close to Young told TMZ that she’s been receiving death threats, which led Stause to stick up for her costar. “It’s been brought to my attention that Nicole’s camp is reporting receiving death threats to several outlets. Being on a reality show on such a huge platform makes for an influx of feedback and I am certainly not a stranger to death threats after 6 seasons,” Stause wrote in a May 25 Instagram Story. “Your opinions help make this show what it is & clearly I have my own. But let’s keep it fun please.”

After fans noticed that Smith and Stause were no longer following each other on Instagram, which sparked rumors they were also feuding, Smith confirmed the pair were no longer on good terms by revealing she had blocked Stause on Instagram, per Page Six. “I’ve never given any reason as to why I blocked chrishell to anyone because I don’t think anyone has asked so far. Don’t worry I’m happy to share in due time,” Smith wrote in response to a viewer accusing her of “hating on Chrishell for no reason.”

When fans expressed their disappointment at their fallout, Smith explained that “some things have greatly and obviously changed” between her and Stause. She added that she didn’t block Stause to be “petty” but for her own mental health. “It’s triggering to see certain people when you are hurt or disappointed etc,” Smith explained. “It’s a sensitive subject with me obviously.”

Smith then addressed the drama between Stause and Young. “Nicole has been my dear friend for 11 years and T and Nicole’s beef has nothing to do with me,” Smith wrote, referencing Stause by her birth name, Terrina. “No one even sees anything between T and I on season six so definitely don’t worry my loyalty lies with the people that I believe, are honest, genuine, and kind. I’ll leave it at that..”

Stause opened up about her fallout with Smith for the first time while appearing on SiriusXM’s Hits 1 LA on May 26. The star explained she and Smith got into an argument over a design project, and because Stause didn’t want her partner, G Flip, involved in the drama, Stause decided to step away from filming, which led the project to getting cut from the show.

“When G decided to film on the show, the one caveat that I’m very protective over is it cannot have anything to do with drama at all. I’m happy to take that heat because, at the end of the day, if G is going to be so gracious as to join this crazy world I’m in, it is my job to protect them,” Stause explained. “So we did venture into a design project originally and as soon as [Smith] had an issue – and she kind of started an issue – that we have later since dropped but when the timeframe of filming was [going on], I didn’t want to continue with the drama. We weren’t speaking, so I didn’t want G involved in that, so she’s upset that that design [project] didn’t go on the show. But we were filming for nine months. You could have done it. You didn’t have to have me and my partner involved.”

Despite what happened, Stause said she still “loves” Smith and hopes she’ll learn to put everything in the past. “I literally love her, so I think that right now she’s in her feelings because she wanted to get something on the show, but at some point, she has to understand this is my partner. I’m very protective,” Stause said.