Reality television star Kim Kardashian has openly discussed her stepfather Caitlyn Jenner's gender transition, characterising the period as 'TV gold' during a recent episode of her family's Hulu series.
Reality TV Versus Scripted Drama
The 45-year-old made the remarks on the latest season of The Kardashians, where she contrasted the pressures of filming a reality show with those of a scripted drama. At the time, Kardashian was working on the legal series All's Fair alongside Sarah Paulson and Glenn Close.
She explained that on reality television, the goal is to make the audience like you 'for who you are', but viewers can become frustrated when life appears too calm. In contrast, scripted work hinges solely on an actor's performance. It was within this context that she quipped, 'It's like, what happened to the days when your stepdad turns into a woman? That was TV gold.'
A Complex Family History
Jenner, who was married to Kris Jenner for 22 years, publicly came out as transgender in an April 2015 interview with Diane Sawyer. She later confirmed in her 2017 memoir that she had undergone gender-affirming surgery. The family's reality show, Keeping Up with the Kardashians, extensively covered the aftermath of this announcement.
While Caitlyn appeared on the current season of The Kardashians as the family prepared to sell their childhood home, their relationship has reportedly been strained at times. This was particularly evident following the 2024 documentary House of Kardashian, a project the Kardashian family did not endorse.
During the press tour for the series, Caitlyn stated she no longer spoke to Kris, calling the situation 'sad,' which reportedly upset other family members, including her biological children Kendall and Kylie Jenner.
Mending Fences and Public Tributes
Caitlyn later took to X, formerly Twitter, to clarify her comments, insisting she participated in the documentary to 'defend my family' and speaks highly of Kris. She claimed they do communicate sporadically and co-parent effectively.
Subsequent reports from TMZ indicated Caitlyn felt 'extremely remorseful' about the interview, and a reconciliation appears to have taken place. This was demonstrated in October 2024 when Kim shared a sweet Instagram tribute for Caitlyn's 75th birthday, which Caitlyn reposted on her own social media.
Jenner previously documented her new life in the E! spinoff series I Am Cait, which aired for two seasons.
