Why Did Lauren Conrad Leave 'The Hills' And Why Isn't She On 'The Hills: New Beginnings'?

The Hills: New Beginnings premieres on MTV tonight.
Many original cast members are returning, including Heidi Montag, Spencer Pratt, Audrina Patridge, Stephanie Pratt, and Justin Bobby, but Lauren Conrad is noticeably absent.
Away from camera crews, Lauren has authored multiple books and designed clothing lines. Plus, she is married and expecting her second baby.

The Hills: New Beginnings returns to MTV tonight for a reality TV reunion 10 years in the making. This time around Speidi (Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt), Audrina Patridge, Stephanie Pratt, Justin Bobby, Frankie Delgado, Mischa Barton, and Jason Wahler are giving viewers a peek at their Los Angeles, California lives, and bringing their children and plenty of drama along for the ride, too.

One leading lady noticeably missing from the original cast: Lauren Conrad (a.k.a. L.C). The original docu-series got its start following Lauren and her friends around Laguna Beach: The Real Orange County and then Los Angeles with The Hills. But the series ended in 2010, and since then Lauren's stayed out of the reality TV spotlight.

After the show ended, Lauren made no secret about the fact that the show often manipulated scenes to amp up the show's drama, telling US Weekly that when Heidi and Spencer Pratt got married on the show in 2009, "The producers literally locked me in the basement with two security guards and wouldnt let me leave! I was throwing a fit!"

A source told People in 2018 that Lauren declined to appear in The Hills: New Beginnings because, "Shes in a different place in her life.But she wants everyone to enjoy themselves. She wishes everyone the best.

Lauren may have called the reality show quits, but she didn't leave her loyal fans completely high and dry. Lauren still selectively shares her aspirational life and milestones like her wedding to William Tell, and the birth of her son Liam on Instagram. She also has a second baby on the way.

View this post on Instagram Its been hard to keep this one to myself! Very excited to share that our family will be getting a little bigger this year A post shared by Lauren Conrad (@laurenconrad) on Apr 2, 2019 at 9:21am PDT

FWIW: Lauren's basically spent her time building an empire since leaving The Hills: she's authored multiple books, launched clothing lines, and founded The Little Market, a non-profit fair trade shop.

The Hills: New Beginning cast is doing just fine without her. "I actually was kind of excited Lauren wasn't on it because I felt like it was more freeing and fair, like, for me," Heidi told Good Morning America .

"Without Lauren, like, she was always the one-she's the leader, the one that would tell you what to do, what not to do," Audrina added. "So now it's kinda like we all get ... you kinda get to make your own choices and be your own self."

Lauren did return to host The Hills: That Was Then, This Is Now 10th anniversary special in 2016. But now, Lauren is focusing on her family and business away from the reality tv cameras. She loves being a mother and focusing on her family and on her work, a source told People . She has a very full and happy life. The rest is still unwritten...