Khloé Kardashianoften reminds viewers that her brotherRob Kardashian is thinking about returning toreality TV.Whenever a family member is asked about Rob these days, they mention how well he is doing. After several tumultuous years in his personal life were captured on camera onKeeping Up With the KardashiansandRob & Chyna,Rob took a step back from public scrutiny.Since then,the father of one has led a much more private life,despite his family’s global fame.
If Rob truly intends to return to reality TV, his history of keeping secrets from the camera and bluffing his way through scenes remains a problem. Unless the intention is to honestly allow cameras to capture his reality, fans will likely not be interested in a return to what they have already seen from the reality star in the past.Rob has several areas in his life that he has tried to keep off-camera in the past, and his current private lifestyle seems to suggest he will continue to do so in the future. This would especially be true about his co-parenting relationship with his ex-fiancéeAngela White, known asBlac Chyna. Chyna has a tumultuous history with the entire Kardashian clan, and herrecent history of legal battleswith the family means it is likely she will continue to be a non-presence on their reality series.
Rob was seemingly comfortable acknowledging on camera the probability that he struggled with his mental health issues, but he often seemed resistant to accepting the wealth of help offered to him by friends and family. Instead, he would share his plans to fix himself through exercise and improved diet, as seen on bothKeeping UpandRob & Chyna, but a long-term commitment to a healthier lifestyle was often lacking. His concerns about his weight, insecurities about being photographed around his famous family, andmental health spirals continued to plague him throughout his reality TV appearances.Without significant improvements in these areas, it’s questionable whether a return to reality TV is in either the star’s or the viewer’s best interest.
The Kardashians
Follow the Kardashian family as they celebrate new ventures and navigate through their new normal: motherhood, relationships, and career goals.
What Rob Kardashian Kept Hidden on ‘KUWTK’
Over the seasons that Rob appeared onKeeping Up With the Kardashians, there were many things that he tried to keep off-camera. What viewers were shown onKeeping Upwas Rob struggling to find a path in life as his sisters built their global empires. Rob’s career choice came under intense scrutiny in the series after he decided not to pursue law as he once intended. His sister Kim was particularly vocal in her disdain about Rob’s seeming lack of ambition. Viewers then saw him struggle to get his sock brandArthur Georgeoff the ground. Once the brand was established, viewers saw very little of Rob’s involvement with the company. Unlike his famous sisters,Rob spent little camera time showcasing his work life on camera.
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While the star was occasionally willing to admit he likely suffered from depression or other mental health issues, he often displayed only superficial efforts to address them. According tooutlets likeTMZand online speculation, Rob’s past erratic behavior on social media and his habit of disappearing when under pressure may have been linked to drug habits. If the allegations are true, his constant shame spirals and bluffs about future plans seem to fit the pattern. After he was hospitalized in 2015 for type 2 diabetes,his weight gain became subject to intense scrutiny and the relentless body shaming he endured contributed to his departure from the show.
While Rob would occasionally discuss his struggles with mental health on his family’s series, he also feigned an understanding of the steps he needed to correct this in himself,often denying the help of professionals offered by his family. His continued avoidance of the cameras suggests he has not fully recovered from his insecurities and aversion to being filmed. If he is reportedly on a good path without filming, he might not want to throw off his newly established equilibrium by reintroducing filming into his life. Unless Rob is ready to truly model an improved lifestyle, it may be best that he does not return to the scrutiny that comes with filming and the constant media attention of being a reality star.
Rob’s Tumultuous History With Blac Chyna Added to His Spiral
Chyna’s history with the Kardashian family pre-dates her romantic relationship with Rob. She and Kim were friends when Chyna was dating rapperTyga. In quick succession, after their relationship came to an end,Tyga began dating Rob’s youngest sister, Kylie, while Rob began pursuing Chyna a few months later. The start of their relationship was the cause of much gossip among his sisters onKeeping Up.His own seriesRob & Chynawas green-lit shortly after his romance with Chyna began, and filming picked up just after their engagement was announced. However, it was difficult for the newly minted couple to hide their relationship troubles from the camera, and by the second episode, Chyna had kicked Rob out of her home as their relationship continued its tumultuous spiral toward separation.
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In 2018, due to the mounting financial strains that arose during his separation from Chyna, he sold half of his sock company to his mother,Kris Jenner.Indocuments acquired byThe Blast, Rob maintained that the domestic violence restraining order that Chyna had filed against him had negatively impacted his career and prevented him from earning money. The couple’s estrangement included Rob posting nude photos of Chyna online, along with sharing several heated text threads between the couple. In one shocking incident, Chyna held an unloaded gun to Rob’s head as they discussed the end of their relationship. One fight between the couple escalated until the pair had to be separated by Kris' partnerCorey Gamblewhen Rob took Chyna’s phone and, in anger, Chyna damaged a gingerbread house, a television, and a door. While the Kardashian clan has been quick to comment that Rob has been through a lot in his personal life,none of these incidents were discussed on their reality program.
With this chaotic history, it is likely that keeping his co-parenting relationship with Chyna off-camera will remain a priority for Rob if he does plan to return to reality TV. While Rob does fleetingly appear at family functions that are filmed onThe Kardashians, the producers and editors are sure to keep him out of frame. His appearances lately are in voice only, as he is put on speakerphone while having conversations with his siblings. The series filmed his daughter’s birthday party in Season 3 without featuring Rob at all, other than his voice telling Khloé the list of requests Dream had come up with for her party. Hiscommitment to remaining off-camerahas seemingly put him on a healthier path personally, andsince there seem to still be areas of his life that will need to remain private, perhaps it is better that he does not return to reality TV.
‘The Kardashians’ Don’t Need Another Private Sibling
Although the Kardashian and Jenner sisters continue to attract global attention,the new iteration of their family’s series islacking in the must-see qualitythatKeeping Upwas known for.Younger sisters Kendall and Kylie film segments together that are either work-related or a staged activity for the sake of the production, but reveal nothing about their personal lives outside the superficial facade they present on camera. Kourtney continues to “Poosh” her way through life with her new boundaries, keeping herself distant from her family. Khloé is committed to remaining behind the gates of her private community and focusing on her children. And in the most recent season, Kim’s schedule is already so jam-packed with work opportunities that she is rarely shown interacting with her family outside these work events.
Reports from his sisters portray Rob as doing well since the arrival of his daughter Dream in 2016 and his subsequent departure from reality TV. If that is the case, he should continue on that path instead of returning to film a reality series that is already full of private family members unwilling to share their reality with the camera. Although, it seems unlikely that he will be returning to a full-time role this season, a promo after the Season 5 premiere ofThe Kardashiansshowed Khloé again speaking to Rob on the phone as she jokes about him stepping in to help their mutual friendMalika Haqqto have another baby. Khloé’s enthusiasm for her brother’s return and theshow runner’s admission that she “follows their lead"when it comes to what is featured on the family’s series,the possibility remains open for Rob’s eventual reappearance on the series.
The Kardashians can be streamed on Hulu.
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