‘Southern Charm’ Cast Defends Austen Kroll From Craig Conover At Reunion: EXCLUSIVE

When Andy asked Craig if he does respect Austen, Craig replied, “Yes. But it’s just, for some reason, seeing Austen drink makes me mad.”

“I know it does,” Austen responded.

Rodrigo Reyes took Austen’s side at this point, saying it seems “weird for (Craig) to be so judgmental.”

“Like, anybody here would go and have a drink,” he added.

“He feels like you think that you’re better than him,” Leva Bonaparte chimed in.

Craig has opened up in recent years about his struggles with alcohol addiction.

“I haven’t drank liquor in two years but I had to make a massive change this summer,” he said during last season’s reunion, per US Weekly. “I’m an addict to that stuff.”

Earlier in Season 10, Craig said he struggled to hang out with Austen while also avoiding drinking.

“I was like, ‘F— me, like, trying not to be an alcoholic is now affecting my friendship with Austen.’ That’s where I was coming from,” he said. “I have tears in my eyes because it’s real. I was in the trenches by myself trying to better my life.”

At the time, Austen apologized to Craig for “not understanding” what he was going through.

In the latest reunion episode, though, the longtime friends didn’t seem to reach the same place of understanding.

“You’re from, like, an ivory tower, man, sometimes, of superiority,” Austen said.

“See, this stuff makes me not want to hang out with him,” Craig replied.

Craig said that Austen saying he has a superior attitude is “f—–d up, and if he thinks that, then we don’t need to hang anymore.”

“Because if you think that I look down on you, you know that that’s not my character,” he added.

Venita Aspen came to Austen’s defense here.

“You just said that to your best friend who is trying to open up his heart to you,” she said to Craig. “That is so rude.”

“That’s how I feel,” Craig answered. “Like, if you think that I think I’m better than you, then you shouldn’t be friends with me.”

Austen then told his friend he’s been “battling” with these feelings for a while.

“It’s what I’m trying to tell you. Why continue on if I’m just going to get, like, backhanded for stepping out of line or something?” he said. “It’s a crazy concept I don’t have with anybody else.”

Things appear to have been less than perfect between the friends for some time now. 

In January, Craig said he wanted to take a “step back” from the podcast they have co-hosted since 2021, “Pillows and Beer.”

“With the podcast, he wouldn’t show up or he’d be hungover. Just miserable,” Craig said of Austen in a January episode of “Southern Charm,” according to US Weekly.

“Maybe I’m outgrowing the (arrangement) we had before,” he added.

Part 2 of the “Southern Charm” reunion will air Thursday at 8 p.m. ET on Bravo and streams the next day on Peacock.

Note: Bravo and Peacock are part of TODAY’s parent company, NBCUniversal.