The Hills (TV series)
About The Hills (TV series)
The Hills is an American reality television series that originally premiered on MTV in May 2006. Developed as a spin-off of the high school reality hit Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County, the series shifted its focus to Los Angeles, California, documenting the personal and professional lives of young adults navigating careers in fashion, media, and entertainment. Created by Adam DiVello and produced by Evolution Media alongside MTV, the show became a defining pop culture franchise of the late 2000s.
Cast and Core Figures
The original narrative centered on Lauren Conrad, who moved to Los Angeles to attend the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising and intern at Teen Vogue. The early main cast featured her roommate Heidi Montag, aspiring fashion industry professional Whitney Port, and Audrina Patridge. As the series expanded, key figures included Spencer Pratt, Brody Jenner, Kristin Cavallari, Stephanie Pratt, and Justin "Justin Bobby" Brescia. Conrad departed the series midway through its fifth run, after which Cavallari assumed the central narrating role for the remainder of the original broadcast.
Broadcast History and Milestones
The Hills aired six seasons on MTV from 2006 to 2010. During its peak years, the program posted strong cable ratings for the network and sparked spin-off programming, including The City featuring Whitney Port. In 2019, MTV launched a sequel series titled The Hills: New Beginnings, which brought back several core cast members alongside new personalities to follow their lives a decade later. The revival ran for two seasons before MTV concluded its run in August 2021.
Cultural Impact and Legacy
The Hills is widely cited for shaping modern serialized unscripted television. Its stylized cinematography, dramatic narrative editing, pop soundtrack placements, and focus on personal relationships set a visual and tonal standard for subsequent reality franchises. The series finale in July 2010 notably drew attention for its meta-commentary on the boundary between scripted framing and reality television.
