For all the heightened drama that’s part and parcel of reality TV, one of the rarely exhibited pockets of peace revolves around Tarek El Moussa and Christina Haack, who somehow turned being friendly exes and successful co-parents into a career move. Arguably even more mind-boggling is the kinship shared by Haack and her former hubby’s second wife Heather El Moussa, and she is well aware that many outsiders don’t understand how they all get along.
The trio shook up the 2025 TV schedule with the first season of The Flip Off — which bid a quick farewell to temporary co-star Josh Hall — and fans are eager to see a second season that has El Moussa and Haack teaming up, as bizarro as that might sound. Don’t go thinking their affinity for each other is insincere, either, was Heather El Moussa shared an Instagram Stories post celebrating her buddy’s birthday with the following message:
It’s crazy how far we’ve come & most will never understand how we are friends. I’m grateful for our relationship & our ability to rise above the noise! Cheers to you & can’t wait to celebrate you! Xo
There are people I’ve been friends with for decades, without any drama over ex-husbands entering into it, who aren’t that warm and kindly when sending birthday wishes. Now, that could have something to do with my own behavior and lack of communication skills, but I prefer to think of it as a perfectly apt comparison for Heather El Moussa and Christina Haack’s platonic vibes.
Haack turned 42 on July 9, and appeared to have a good time out celebrating with her newest boyfriend Chris Larocca, whom she started dating while in the midst of finalizing her contentious divorce from Josh Hall. It’s unclear at this point whether or not the El Moussas took part in any b-day shenanigans, but it’s likely fans will see them all together again sooner rather than later. (They did all hang out for Fourth of July weekend, as documented on Instagram.)
Just a few weeks prior to that, Tarek El Moussa shared pics from a group dinner that he said was set up by the two female HGTV stars in question.
I have to assume that Heather El Moussa (and Christina Haack, for that matter) deal with a vast assortment of fan reactions, and that many are likely less than savory in one way or another. But I do hope that fans and followers maintain their couth and kindness when sharing confused and curious reactions to the two reality stars sharing a legitimate friendship.
Clearly, enough people are invested in this joyfully non-traditional scenario that it's become its own subsection of the fan feedback that she gets, presumably with fewer examples in real life than on social media, though that might be a naive presumption. All things considered, I think we can all agree that there's no strange magick or otherworldly elements at play here.
The El Moussas and Haack took (and are still taking) the most pragmatic and level-minded steps forward, and have turned what could have been an unfortunate and damaging situation into a net positive across the board, from The Flip Off to helping with each other's promotional posts, bikinis included or otherwise.
Now, ahem, about that Season 2 announcement, HGTV...?
