Flip or Flop’s Christina and Tarek El Moussa separated last May. At the time, Kaiser was completely unsurprised to hear Tarek had snapped, grabbed some guns and went off into the night. (I’ve never watched the show and only know about them from what I’ve read.) After news of the split and fight came out, Christina tried to smooth it all over by saying there was much ado about nothing. There are some possible reasons for trying to dilute what happened: 1) they are doing it for the show they both still host or 2) there’s abuse. Unfortunately, in this case, it turns out the answer is both. According to In Touch, Tarek abused Christina on set in between shots. Apparently it was so bad that the crew tried to protect Christina by setting up shots quickly so as to minimize the amount of downtime.
Flip or Flop’s Christina El Moussa has been hiding her pain for years dealing with Tarek’s erratic, ugly behavior and wild mood swings.
Now, an eyewitness is sharing new details with Life & Style magazine, revealing his most disgusting assault yet: In front of Flip or Flop’s crew, he threatened to rape Christina. He intended it as a joke, says the eyewitness, but it left those who heard it appalled.
He told the mother of his two children, “‘Shut up, woman, or I’ll rape you.’ He actually joked about raping Christina on more than one occasion. Tarek thinks it’s funny,” the eyewitness shares. No one else thought it was, and the crew did their best to shield her from him.
In fact, Life & Style has learned that there was a discussion in spring 2016, in which “the crew was asked to be efficient with takes so that there was no downtime for Tarek and Christina on set,” recalls the source. “When there’s downtime, bad things happen.”
Christina eventually learned to seek refuge from Tarek in her car during filming breaks. But Tarek was hard to ignore. “One time, he went up to the car and pounded on the window,” the source who witnessed it all tells Life & Style. “Christina locked the doors.”
Tarek’s low points were “a huge factor in their marriage falling apart,” says a HGTV insider. “Christina hit a breaking point and couldn’t stand to be around him anymore. She fell out of love.”
As In Touch magazine first revealed last week, Tarek constantly tormented and mortified Christina on the Flip or Flop set, calling her a “whore” and grabbing her chest and butt in front of the crew.
Us Weekly reported that when Tarek is not physically assaulting his estranged wife or making hateful threats and calling her names, he is bragging loudly about banging 20-something women like their children’s nanny, whom he then dumped for the nanny’s friend. Tarek also seems to be blowing through their savings on his new girlfriends. Apparently, his on-screen budget-conscious persona is just a facade because off-screen he’s buying his girlfriends Jeeps and renting private jets to take them away for the weekend.
The part that is just tearing me in half, I mean in addition to all the horror I just wrote, is that Christina is being forced to cooperate – by the network. In Touch claims they have told the couple if they don’t play nice on the show, they’ll sue for breach of contract. So Christina is forced to endure her ex’s taunts, haranguing and assault, knowing she has no protection from her bosses and if she doesn’t smile pretty for the camera, she’ll lose her livelihood. If this is true, they don’t make strong enough exclamations for me to properly express my views on this situation. (E! News claims to have a source that says it isn’t true.) Rumor has it that Christina is hoping for her own show. I hope she gets it (on another network) and that she and her children find a new healthy environment in which to live. And that Tarek just goes away.
Photo credit: In Touch, Fame/Flynet Photos and Getty Images
Then the effing network should be paying for her 24/7 security detail.
Cant she sue for hostile work environment and demand her contract be terminated? I cannot imagine this continued abuse with multiple witnesses doesn’t invalidate any contract. Anyone with employment law knowledge out there care to comment?
That’s what I was wondering. Something needs to happen, this guy sounds unhinged and dangerous, especially if he’s prone to grabbing guns and running off.
Agree, there must be some type of protection for her… if their contract is subjecting her to bodily harm/ assault and/or emotional abuse.
I’m still in law school, so any real lawyers should feel free to correct me, but if they are forcing her to endure this kind of abuse, they could be looking at an intentional infliction of emotional distress suit.
She could be worried that she will ruin her chances of getting another solo show if she sues the network. She has two young children that she has to provide for, so future employment is probably pretty high on her priority list. Her career is extra important if Tarek is blowing through their money. Thankfully, I think Christina’s parents are wealthy so they could probably help her out if things get REALLY bad.
If what is reported is true, what HGTV is doing is vile.
Maybe he is blowing through their money to be spiteful and not because he is not cheap as hell. I used to work CS in a bank and you would not believe how spiteful people can be when they are getting divorced- especially if they have joint accounts.
NOTE TO ANYONE GETTING MARRIED OR STAYING IN A LONG TERM RELATIONSHIP: never get a joint bank/credit card account.
NOTE TO ANYONE GETTING MARRIED OR STAYING IN A LONG TERM RELATIONSHIP: never get a joint bank/credit card account.
Sound advice.
I gotta say…I’m happily married, my husband is a saint, really. We have separate accounts, but access to everything of the others. It works so much better for us that way. He pays rent, car etc and I just do groceries and the fun stuff.
My mother always said this. (And I listened.)
This is not really practical if you don’t work. My hubby and I had separate accounts until I stopped working when my first baby was borne. He then added me to his bank account. I still have a small private account & credit card but there is not a lot in it, and I certainly shouldn’t live for long on the money in there.
I think the “note to anyone getting married” needs to be: know who you’re marrying, and date long enough so you are confident putting your love and trust in this person, since so much of your happiness is tied to making the right decision in a spouse.
PREACH. I’ve just gotten out of a bad marriage during which my husband spent all our money & stopped paying our bills. Maxed out four of his credit cards & one of MINE. We almost lost our house. My credit will be bad for YEARS. So yeah: be smart, save your OWN money in a separate account, DON’T share credit/debit cards, and make sure you check all joint accounts regularly AND make sure your bills are being paid on time.
Get an account if you want to but don’t put all your money on it. But having a joint account can be very practical for some things.
ITA. A joint account for things you need to buy / pay for frequently as a family (food, rent, car etc) or for vacations makes sense. However, if possible the majority should stay on the personal saving account just to keep one’s independence.
Yes. We have a joint household account that only contains money for the upkeep of the properties and the like. Paul has his own accounts and I have my own accounts as well.
That’s what I always thought made sense – joint account for shared expenses, separate for everything else.
Yes. I cannot recommend this enough. My husband and I do this and we have a joint account for home/family expenses, as well as a shared savings account for emergencies. We maintained our personal accounts for everything else. If there’s ever a case where one of us needs cash or to deposit more to cover a one off expense it happens no questions asked. We never fight over money.
We have three accounts: his, mine and ours. We both contribute to “ours” for rent and household bills. Other than that, money is separate. This holds each of us accountable.
You can do joint, just make sure you have a f*ck off fund. Ideally enough to cover 3 months rent and expenses, but even 1 month is a start.
Never combine funds ever. There’s just no need for it imo.
What I’ve seen work really well is to have one joint account with enough to run the household in it, but each partner has his or her own account as well.
Separate accounts seems entirely impractical to me. My husband and I both work and we have 2 kids. A percentage of our income goes to 401ks and college savings. The rest of it is eaten up every month with joint expenses: rent, childcare, food, utilities, kids clothes/toys, family entertainment, medical bills.
Who the hell has all this “extra money” to put aside in a personal account? And what do you spend that money on? Clothes? I don’t get it.
Maybe the separate accounts idea only applies before kids come along and eat up all your disposable income? Or if you are rich?
+1 Sophie. We had separate accounts before kids. I paid mortgage, he paid all the rest, and I had all the savings- he had his own. But I stopped working, so I had to put everything into his and close mine (we barely make the bills now). There is no separation. If I ever get back to work, I plan to open my own and pay from there/”give his back.”
I dont really know these people but I did see a TMZ clip of them in damage control mode after some of their stories broke. They were walking to their cars, coffees in hand, fake talking to each other and then when they got to her car, she leaned over for a fake goodbye air kiss. And right at that point you see him he whispering something in her ear and her entire face just freeze. This wasnt a subtle body language change! It was so weird that TMZ staff discussed it at length at their filmed editorial meeting. Yeah, I believe the abuse stories.
Yep. Saw that too.
Well, this took an ugly turn. I occasionally check their Instagrams and they both speak highly of each other so I was impressed they were holding it together for the children. My husband and I watch this show so and we noticed Tarek’s behavior definitely seemed more hostile towards her in the last few seasons. He just snaps at her and will bluntly tell her she has horrible ideas. Personally I think he’s on some type of pain pills. On one of the earlier seasons he has back surgery and I swear I noticed a change after that, I know all about that type of addict and he fits it perfectly. No excuse for threatening to rape your wife, disgusting pig. I hope she does get her own show, she always seemed like the more normal one and comfortable around her kids, his interactions with the kids seemed forced and awkward to me.
his interactions with the kids seemed forced and awkward to me.
^This! I was on vacation and watched a mini marathon of their show and that stood out to me big time. I even commented on this to my husband. He has never given me a good vibe. Just something about him always made me feel that he could be very mean.
I think a lot of it is that he always addresses the camera & people with his chin raised, a physical manifestation of arrogance, sometimes with aggression.
I had never heard of this show or these people before the holidays, but I was visiting home and since my mother watches HGTV 24/7, there happened to be a Marathon of this show one day I was there. From the few hours I saw, I totally agree-he seems like a total knob, he’s mean and dismissive of his wife and seems like he can barely stand to be in his childrens’ company. I’m not at all surprised that he’d be the type of guy who thinks rape jokes are funny.
You know, with the reports of erratic behavior, the first thought I had was drugs, as well. I noticed the he lost a lot of weight, and wonder if he has added cocaine or something to the previous pain meds he was said to be taking for the spine issues. I always thought their daughter had a kind of wild, almost manic look about her, and it makes me wonder what she has been exposed to – seeing and hearing her father fly off the handle. It’s pretty sad to me, because I grew up with a father who was often unpredictable at home, and I feel like the little girl is trying to hard to be a pleaser, and be “normal” all the while she is being vigilant, and fearful of the unpredictability.
My first though was also, this guy is a cokehead. Ladies, this is why we march. She has a right to a safe work environment, but that is being refused by the network. He gets to behave any way he wants without recourse. This is a prime example of inequality, specifically on the workplace, regardless of their marital status.
He had cancer recently, which could explain the weight loss. (A viewer had noticed a lump or thickening in his neck and contacted HGTV to warn him that she thought he might have a tumor–he did, and it was removed.)
I’m not surprised by any of this, something is off with him. I stopped watching the show a year or two ago because he just seemed so skeevy. I noticed he seemed darker after the back surgery as well.
I could never watch this show because of the horrible vibes coming from this man. And I had no idea any of this was going on! He just comes off as a horrible person and I guess that’s the truth. What an animal.
so the network is complicit t in this. I mean, you see abuse but you keep shooting anyway?
yeah, I’ve now written to HGTV, not sure if I’ve got the right contact info though, I’ve just used what’s publicly available.
It’s the sweeping it under the rug part. Money is not worth more than a person’s safety.
The almighty dollar strikes again.
Yikes. If it is true that the network is forcing her to do the show, I’m sure the bad PR this article is going to create will convince them to let her out of her contract.
What I heard was that they were finishing out the season, then the show was over, if that was what was best for them. Christina may stay with HGTV, Tarek is not going to be offered anything. Not sure how true it is, but someone who works for Scripps mentioned it. She also said they have security on set and no one really interacts with Tarek.
This scum is ugly on the inside and the outside. Piece of sh!t men raised by idiots are the ones that think rape is funny.
I can’t stand either of them but Christina seems to have her act together & Tarek is a twitchy, sweaty nutjob. I agree w/ whoever suggested he may have a painkiller addiction.
Surely with all the cameras around they are able the document his abusive behavior?
Christina will land on her feet, Tarek……rehab or homeless junkie.
My husband and I watch the show late at night when there are reruns. My husband has said for over a year that he looks crazy. It’s something in the eyes.
Never watched this show, but they always seemed TOO happy. Proof that looks mean SHIT. Fuck this asshole, sounds like an abusive piece of shit. Hope she gets the fuck out and takes all his money. And the kids.
I don’t know any of these people or their show but something about this story; does anyone know why this guy is violent?
She shouldn’t be tolerating this for any reason. I can’t believe she has to honor “a contract” given this violent man’s behavior. Why has it gone on so long? Why isn’t the network concerned for her safety? And why didn’t she get away from him when it first started?
This story is strange to me, because I figure if he behaves like this in front of other people, what is he like at home? Christina has her kids to think about. She should at least have a restraining order. I have a hard time believing that any employer can threaten someone with the loss of their job when their co-worker is unstable and violent. Has no one heard of how situations like this escalate?
Between Chip/Jo and Tarek/Christina, my HGTV shows are going down like flies! If either of the Property Brothers screws up, I’m going to lose my mind.
I love HGTV and I have a conspiracy theory: Like literally within a week tops of the Chip/Jo gay-bashing preacher stories coming out, the Tarek/Christina gun incident got leaked to TMZ. How was something that happened in May (IIRC) not leaked until November or December? Especially since TMZ is known to have paid moles in the LAPD? I know the El Moussas are only “just” on HGTV and not on a network, but still. So my conspiracy theory is that HGTV saw all the criticism being thrown at Chip and Jo for being homophobes, and since Fixer Upper is a mega cash cow and Flip or Flop really isn’t, somebody at HGTV tipped off TMZ to take the spotlight away from Chip and Jo. And, you know, mission accomplished. Nobody’s talking about Chip and Jo being right-wing nutjobs anymore. And Tarek and Christina’s contract is almost up anyway, so HGTV can not renew it and nobody will question that decision based on the El Moussas’ personal drama.
The crew did thei best to shield her…
Umm Whet???
Why the hell didn’t someone reprimand his a$$??? Or are dollars more important than a woman’s safety????? 😡😡💩
Am I the only one that is skeptical🤔
I know it’s In Touch, but I actually really doubt Christina — er, I mean, “sources” — would be going public with this unless she has receipts (taped footage of him saying that stuff, crew members’ testimony, etc.), for many reasons.
I wish they would BOTH just go away. I am a huge HGTV fan – love Property Brothers, Fixer Upper, and House Hunters – but I never liked this show. I get a really sketchy vibe from both of them. I always got the impression that she is fakey fake fake fake. And honestly, on the show, it always seemed to me like she makes fun of HIM moreso than the other way around. He just seemed socially awkward to me, but now there’s this whole other can of worms about him. It would be nice if they would just cancel this unpleasant show and replace it with something fun to watch!