Chrishell Stause reveals how romance with Jason Oppenheim began: ‘We became best friends before anything’
‘We announced it a little earlier than I would’ve liked to,’ says Selling Sunset star
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Your support makes all the difference.Chrishell Stause has revealed how she and her Selling Sunset co-star, Jason Oppenheim, began dating earlier this year.
Speaking to Cosmopolitan, the 40-year-old actor and estate agent explained that she and Oppenheim, who runs the real-estate company Oppenheim Group with his twin brother, Brett, revealed they were dating sooner than she would’ve preferred.
“We announced it a little earlier than I would’ve liked to, because I felt like we were about to be outed by paparazzi photos,” Stause explained.
“But I didn’t want people to think it was a mistake or they’d ‘caught us’ doing something - I wanted to be able to hold my boyfriend’s hand at dinner.”
News of the couple’s romantic status came to light in July when the pair were pictured embracing on holiday in Capri together with a number of the Selling Sunset crew.
Stause shared a photograph of herself with Oppenheim from the holiday on Instagram, prompting a series of comments from her Selling Sunset co-stars including Brett, who also stars on the series.
“Love you Chrishell. Thank you for making my brother happy,” he wrote.
Now, Stause has revealed that she and Oppenheim were close friends before they started a romantic relationship.
“We became best friends before anything, and I’ve never had that before,” she said.
“We know everything about each other and tell each other everything. We’re silly and laugh a lot.
“I love that there’s no need to try and pretend to be the best version of yourself. I recommend being friends with someone first - I’ve never done that before and it’s quite different.”
Stause’s co-star, Mary Fitzgerald, also told the publication about the moment she realised Oppenheim and Stause were a couple.
“We were out together and I noticed the way he was looking at her was different, so when she went to the bathroom I confronted him. When she came back Jason said, ‘Sorry Chrishell, Mary knows’,” she said.
Stause was previously married to This Is Us actor Justin Hartley, who told her he had filed for divorce over text, which was documented in the third series of Selling Sunset.
“I found out because he text[ed] me that we were filed,” Stause said of the moment in the show. “45 minutes later, the world knew.”
Recalling the experience being a part of Selling Sunset, Stause said: “I was going through a really hard time and didn’t want to be in front of the camera.
“I thought it was going to be a public humiliation. But it actually had the opposite effect - it gave my pain a purpose. Now, I feel fearless. I can’t think of anything worse to have to do on television, so from here, it’s all up.
“Any kind of drama I have with the girls... nothing will get to [that] place. If I can get through that, I can get through anything.”
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