‘Got to Get Out’: Spencer Pratt on If He’s the Show’s ‘Villain’ & Why Heidi Told Him to ‘Quit’

Alyssa Norwin April 7, 2025, 3:37 pm

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Spencer Pratt is returning to reality television on Hulu’s new competition show Got to Get Out, where he’ll have the chance to win $1 million alongside other reality TV alums and a crew of rookies. The show features all 20 contestants under one roof with the goal of escaping the mansion to try and win the prize money that’s up for grabs.

“Lies and lunacy collide in this exhilarating competition series where an outrageous mix of reality icons and crafty gamers must conspire to get out. In this house, time is money. As the clock ticks, the prize money increases,” a press release teases. “The longer they stay, the greater their chance to earn more. They can split the money equally in the end or try to make their escape at any point in time with the accumulated money all for themselves, leaving others to start again at $0.”

Pratt opened up about his experience to TV Insider and revealed whether he’ll be reinstating his “villain’ persona on the show. Plus, he tells us why wife Heidi Montag begged him to “quit” at one point, who his closest friend in the house was, and much more.

Tell me about getting cast for this show and why you wanted to join.

Spencer Pratt: I’ve always said to Heidi that I always wanted to do a show where you could win money. All of the shows I’ve ever done, I win money in the sense that I’m cool with doing whatever the producers want to make a more entertaining show, but it’s a lot more out of your control. You can only do so much. In this show, I didn’t care about making up fights or feuds. My only goal was to make as much money as possible. My goal was to win $1 million. … That’s a solid reality TV goal that I wanted to add to my resume is being a winner on one of these shows where you win $1 million.

How much did you understand about the concept going in, and did you have a strategy?

Watching the show back, already I feel stupid because what the show was versus what you think it was in your head … like, I wore an all-black ninja outfit to get into the house. I thought it was going to be way more physical and more an escape show. I was wearing tactical boots and all this. I did this whole mission, injured myself to get into this house, it’s not even shown. I’m like, “I should’ve just walked in there with my Heidi shirt, sunglasses on, relaxed.” So I feel stupid off the jump. You think, “Oh I got this,” but everything, looking back on it, I definitely would’ve done everything different now. … I did the complete wrong strategy.

Was there anyone on the cast you were excited to see and who you wanted to work with and anyone else you maybe wanted to distance yourself from?

I love reality TV. I felt like that’s my edge, understanding people’s personas or personalities and not taking it personal at this stage in the game. I knew everybody, so I was excited to have a cast that was so … if I know them, then everybody else does. I felt honored to be part of all these OGs in a world that I enjoy so much. Nobody’s phasing me. I had a blast. I think I had too much fun. I don’t think you’re supposed to actually have fun.

Did you make any friendships with anyone who you’re still close with now?

I would say Val [Chmerkovskiy], who I did not know, because I don’t watch Dancing With the Stars. I know he’s a really good dancer now because I watched all his clips … he’s definitely one of my favorite people I’ve ever met.

I liked everybody. That’s why it’s a good show. I don’t think they wanted everyone to … there’s enough shows with everyone yelling at each other and fighting. I think it was just genuinely nice, good people that really wanted to win a million dollars. I think that was the goal with trying to hit all the quadrants for a family fun show that I could watch with my kids. I can’t wait to show it to my 7-year-old. I think if that was their purpose in the casting, it worked because if you have a bunch of people yelling at each other you can’t have a 7-year-old watching it.

So it’s not super cutthroat?

That’s the thing, I don’t talk smack about anybody. I watched the sizzle, and Omarosa called me “the weirdest person in reality TV.” I’m like, “I’m not the weirdest person, what are you talking about?” I wish people would say stuff like this to my face because then I would’ve been like, “If I’m weird, then you’re really weird, Omarosa.” I wasn’t like that. But again, I don’t know what people are saying behind my back. So maybe. Maybe it’s the most s**t-talking cast ever.

Do you feel pressure to keep up your “villain” persona when you’re on these shows?

Only if the producers ask that from me because at the end of the day, it is a job. Going into this I’m like, “What do you want? Do you want me targeting people?” They’re like, “No. Just try to get the million dollars.” It was like a vacation for me. I had too much fun. I look back now, and I’m like, “Maybe I should’ve just ruined everyone’s experience and been a monster in it,” but I really was trying to win the money. You gotta play everybody. You can’t be a villain if you’re trying to scheme and plot and have everybody potentially for alliances, so that was a new thing I had to do. It wouldn’t have helped me to be the bad guy in this setting. You want everyone, if they get a clue, to maybe bring you in.

How did Heidi feel about you doing the show, and do you think she’d be a good contestant if there’s a future season?

You know, pre-Heidi being a pop star, definitely, but now her new life of rehearsing and recording, I don’t think she could leave for 10 days, which is a great high-class problem. Yes, I think she would be great at whatever she does. I’m not sure she would enjoy it as much as I did.

Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt attend the Heidi Montag and Spencer Pratt Host Party in Beverly Center

Gonzalo Marroquin/Getty Images

She told me to quit and leave after, like, five days when I did get to FaceTime her, and I hadn’t slept in five days, for real. The first five days you’re so concerned about guarding the money and making sure no one breaks out. She was like, “Leave. This is not worth it, Spencer, this is the craziest I’ve ever seen you.” She was very worried about my mental health and wanted me to talk to the network psychiatrist, which I did, we had some great talks. But I wanted to go in and be like, “I did everything I could to potentially win the million dollars” and never look back and be like, “I wish I tried harder.” One thousand percent, I can say, you could not try harder to win a million dollars on a TV show than I did. Which feels good.

Any updates on life post-wildfires? Where are you living now, what’s the latest?

We’re renting in Santa Barbara. My parents just put their lot that I grew up in my whole life on the market this week because they can’t afford to rebuild, nor do they have 10 years in life to deal with that. … Our house still has a mortgage and property taxes, but with no house on it. So, obviously, the goal here is to just work really hard at all these opportunities that have been miracle blessings that have been coming through and ideally would love to rebuild our house.

But one thing I’m really working on now is not to imagine the future that I think. My future is so different from the future I thought my whole life it was going to be, so I try to just focus on [the Got to Get Out premiere on] April 11. That’s as far out as I can go. My life was so different, so now I try to not emotionally or mentally connect with what’s going to be our future. I’m just going to be in the present, work hard, stay healthy, and what’s going to happen is going to happen, is what I’ve learned the hard way.

Is Heidi Montag Heading to 'RHOBH'? Spencer Pratt Says...

Were you surprised by how much support you received from the public after everything that happened?

To be honest, I think I’m dead. I keep joking, like, “I’m dead and this is a weird upside-down world out of Stranger Things.” Surprised doesn’t even … the way I’m treated places, how people talk to me, I went to a new dimension. Obviously, I liked my life before and my friends and family’s lives they’ve had. I’m not saying I’m happier now, but it is such a good feeling to have strangers everywhere you go say positive things to you. It’s a weird pendulum I swing. You want to be so happy and like this is so amazing, but it came from such darkness. But it is what it is.

Got to Get Out, Series Premiere, Friday, April 11, Hulu