Kristin Cavallari is once again shutting down dating rumors with Southern Charm’s Austen Kroll.
“Let’s f***ing talk about it,” the Laguna Beach alum, 39, began on the Tuesday, August 25, episode of her “Let’s Be Honest” podcast after romance speculation resurfaced following the pair’s recent vacation in Mallorca, Spain.
“Every f***ing DM I’ve had for the last two weeks has been about Austen Kroll coming [on the trip],” Cavallari continued. “There was zero hooking up. We weren’t even flirting or anything. He’s like a buddy.”
Cavallari gushed that Kroll, also 39, is “so respectful and so cool” and a “big teddy bear” with “the biggest heart.”
Cavallari’s friend Justin Anderson, who was also on the trip along with other pals, insisted that there was “none of that weird tension” between the reality stars. However, he admitted that he was “nervous” Kroll would get drunk and hit on Cavallari.
“I’ve always had male friends,” Cavallari said. “I’ve always enjoyed men, probably because I’m basically a dude.”
The Hills alum added that she “without a doubt think[s] men and women can be friends.”
“I think Austen and I are a good example of that,” she noted. “I don’t think Austen likes me or has a crush on me. We’re able to actually just be friends, and I think that’s why it was such a beautiful thing. And it was never awkward.”
This is certainly not the first time Cavallari and Kroll have faced romance rumors. In 2020, after the pair were spotted out to dinner with Anderson and Kroll’s costar Craig Conover, Kroll exclusively told Us that they were all simply good friends.
“She came to town with her friend Justin, and the four of us [with Conover] had dinner,” he explained. “We’ve all been in contact ever since. We’re in this, like, big old group chat, and the group chat is active. We had a blast with them, and I’m gonna take a trip to see them in Nashville sometime soon.”
Cavallari also clapped back at dating rumors at the time, writing via Instagram, “I didn’t realize I wasn’t allowed to have FRIENDS that are guys.”
Cavallari has even been the subject of love triangle rumors with Kroll and Conover, 37. (The podcaster had a brief fling with Conover in 2021, but they have remained close friends.)
Cavallari was previously married to former NFL quarterback Jay Cutler from 2013 to 2020. The exes share kids Camden, 13, Jaxon, 12, and Saylor, 10. Following their split, she dated TikTok personality Mark Estes in 2024.
Meanwhile, Kroll has been linked to several fellow reality stars, including Chelsea Meissner, Lindsay Hubbard, Madison LeCroy, Ciara Miller, Olivia Flowers and Taylor Ann Green.
