Paris Hilton and Lindsay Lohan Are Hollywood’s Definition of “Frenemies”

In many parts of Hollywood, who you know can help your career or it can get you in trouble. Socialite and businesswoman Paris Hilton has been in the spotlight since she was a young teen.

She’s been making headlines since the early ‘00s for everything from a sex tape to her on-again-off-again friendship with actress Lindsay Lohan. Here’s a look at their relationship, which has had a lot of ups and downs, classifying them as “frenemies.”

Paris Hilton was famous for being famous and was arguably the first star to do that (save for her great-grandfather, Conrad Hilton's second wife, Zsa Zsa Gabor). But thanks to her unique look and the money at her disposal from her great-grandpa’s hotel empire, Paris was famous for just being herself.

And she had a surprisingly large hand in forming many young women’s careers or elevating them to the place that they're at now. This includes Kim Kardashian, Nicole Richie, and Lindsay Lohan.

The two started hanging out in the early 2000s. As both were dubbed the new “it” girls of Hollywood, paparazzi followed them everywhere. And they loved the attention.

The two were seemingly out together every weekend. They were photographed going to clubs and A-list parties, and they were inseparable, and their fame grew because of it.

However, all that changed in May 2006. Paris was enjoying a night out with her then-boyfriend, Brandon Davis, the son of an oil empire. Brandon went on a rant to the paparazzi cameras about Lindsay calling her “fire crotch” and poking fun at her for being “really poor.”

“I think she’s worth about $7 million, which means she’s really poor,” Brandon said at the time. “It’s disgusting. She lives in a motel.” While Paris didn’t say anything, the smirk she served made this feud go viral. It was thought that Brandon went on the rant because Paris was upset that Lindsay was rumored to be dating her ex, Stavros Niarchos.

From there, instead of seeing Paris and Lindsay rock the latest, erm, cool fashion from the early 2000s, the two fired shots at each other through the media. First, Lindsay clapped back by talking about the sex tape of Paris that she made with an ex. Then, Paris would call Lindsay names in the media, while Lindsay went back and forth a few times saying they were still friends or that she basically hates her.

Months later, in November of the same year, Paris and Lindsay were photographed getting into a car together with Britney Spears. It felt like the two had made amends and the feud was over, but photographs didn’t tell the whole story, Paris explained years later in 2018.

Talking to Andy Cohen on his radio show, Paris said that the night she was photographed with Lindsay and Britney, Lindsay wasn’t even supposed to be there. Instead, Paris explained that they attended a party at a hotel before heading to the afterparty.

When Britney and Paris wanted to leave, Paris said Lindsay “started chasing us … and squeezed in [the car]. I didn’t want to humiliate her in front of all the paparazzi and be like ‘get out of my car,’ so I was like, ‘whatever.’”

Paris spoke about Lindsay again to Andy Cohen as a guest on his talk show Watch What Happens Live. She was asked to say three nice things about Lindsay, which she wasn’t able to do.

So far, it doesn’t seem like the two will ever not be in the frenemies zone and be friends like Paris has done with several other women she was closer to while she was younger. Ultimately, it might be for the best that Paris and Lindsay do their own thing. But never say never, right?