Katie Maloney, Tom Schwartz Took ‘Control’ of Divorce Narrative

Feeling the pressure. Katie Maloney isn’t here for gossip — especially when it comes to her estranged marriage with Tom Schwartz. 

“There was a lot of speculation and rumors happening. Listen, I don’t know how,” Maloney, 35, said about her divorce filing during a May 16 episode of Kamie Crawford’s “Relationsh*t” podcast. “We were trying to just keep it private and go through some motions and all of that just between us and tell on a need-to-know basis some friends and family before we made anything public. But it just started creeping out there. So we then went to Instagram as you do.”

The Vanderpump Rules star revealed that she originally wanted to keep her split with Schwartz, 39, quiet but felt too much stress after hearing there was gossip surrounding the pair’s relationship status.

“I got really massively uncomfortable and had all sorts of anxiety once there was all these things swelling around,” the former SUR waitress said. “I don’t like people speaking for me and saying things that maybe aren’t true. I don’t like that. So we had to take control of that narrative.”

The duo were together for over a decade before they announced their split via Instagram in March. 

“After 12 years on an adventure through life together Tom and I are ending our marriage,” the Ohio native shared. “This ending is not met with resentment or animosity, no sides to choose. We have deep admiration for one another that will always remain and we cherish our friendship.”

The TomTom co-owner, who made a separate statement from his estranged wife the same day, suggested that it was Maloney who called it quits.

“Fully respect Katie’s decision and we’ve had healthy, productive conversations about it. It would be far sadder if she decided to stay with me whilst not happy,” he captioned a post, adding, “We had some of the most blissful, romantic, fun times humanly possible over the course of our relationship Katie has taught me so much about love & being a better partner.”

While Maloney’s costar LaLa Kent exclusively told Us Weekly in April that “Katie and I are on the prowl together” following her split with ex Randall Emmett, the “You’re Gonna Love Me” host maintains that she won’t be ready for another serious relationship “anytime soon.”

“The dating apps scare me … I mean, if there’s a little kissing sort of situation, I wouldn’t turn it down,” she told Us at the time.  “I’m open because I think it could be maybe potentially healthy or maybe good for the ego … I’m not trying to get a boyfriend or a relationship anytime soon, but I don’t see any problem in going on a date or just, you know, flirting with someone.”

The Minnesota native, for his part, was recently linked to fellow Bravo personality Raquel Leviss after the two were allegedly seen “boldly holding hands and making out” at Coachella in April, but quickly dispelled the rumors. “Guys hate to break it to you but I wasn’t at Coachella 😂,” he tweeted at the time.