Kourtney Kardashian is poking fun at sister Kim over an indelible Keeping Up With The Kardashians moment.
And Kris Jenner is clearly in on the joke.
Kourt has been a bit reclusive in recent months, but she enjoyed an early spring trip to the ocean. And she even chose to share some glimpses with fans.
She saw her chance to roast Kim with a KUWTK callback, and she took it.
Speaking during a The Kardashians Season 4 confessional, Kourtney Kardashian initially pretends that she merely forgot to include her family. (Image Credit: Hulu)
On Sunday, April 7, Kourtney Kardashian took to her Instagram page to share new photos.
In the pair of tropical pics, which you can see below, Kourtney is advertising her incredible post-baby body in a bikini. The water is the “crystal blue” of a pleasantly flavored Gatorade.
Kourtney Kardashian remains absolutely gorgeous. And she looks like she had fun in the sun.
Check out Kourtney’s caption
“My diamond earring came off in the ocean and it’s gone,” Kourtney Kardashian wrote on Instagram.
Out of context, this sounds like a sad situation. First, because it would be the loss of jewelry. Second, because it is generally unsafe to wear shiny jewelry into the ocean — as it can attract sharks, which are notoriously curious.
However, this is a callback to Season 6 of Keeping Up With The Kardashians, which aired in 2011. Kim Kardashian said those words during an episode while the family vacationed in French Polynesia.
After Kourtney Kardashian quoted her sister’s tearful line about a missing earring, momager Kris Jenner chimed in with an Instagram comment that quoted Kourtney herself. (Image Credit: Instagram)
Kris Jenner swept in with the punchline
The context was that Kim’s then-boyfriend Kris Humphries (remember that?) had picked her up and tossed her into the ocean. Kim lost a $75,000 diamond earring and had a crying meltdown about it.
At the time, Kourtney poked her head out of a door, asking about the Kardashian drama. That was when Kourt hit Kim with an amazing line.
“Kim,” she coolly advised her younger sister. “There’s people that are dying.” Now, Kris is repeating the quote towards Kourtney.
Some ‘Keeping Up With The Kardashian’ moments will always be with us
Kourtney’s message to Kim was wise and a healthy dose of reality. But her delivery and the contrast to Kim’s (understandable!) distress made it hilarious.
It’s one of those Kardashian family moments that you see even if you’ve never even a minute of the actual show.
In fact, we’d go so far as to say that “Kim, there’s people that are dying” is an all-time reality TV line. Much like America’s Next Top Model‘s equivalent, “I just want to tell you that some people have war in their countries.”
Is Kourtney Kardashian shading Kim on purpose?
Ordinarily, we’d say that this is just a fun, playful callback — along the lines of “don’t be f–king rude” or “it’s what she deserves.”
These are iconic family moments that have become enduring memes.
However, as recently as 2023, Kim Kardashian spoke about how she’s tired of hearing references to this moment.
On The Kardashians, Kim Kardashian addresses the confessional camera. (Image Credit: Hulu)
This quote has gotten old for Kim
In a November 2023 GQ video, Kim Kardashian lamented that “this gets so old” when a fan referred to Kim’s earring moment. “Any time I’m in water, people will ask me if I found my diamond earring in the ocean.”
She complained: “I don’t know if I showed this on our show, but Kylie found the earring. So, she dove in the ocean, put on goggles, found it, and then she went back and found the back of it.”
Kim announced: “That’s how clear the water is in Bora Bora, so, guys, the earring has been found.”
Kourtney Kardashian might be deliberate shading Kim
With that in mind, it’s possible that Kourt brought this up deliberately. If she knows that Kim’s so over it, her goal may have been to antagonize Kim.
But it’s very likely that Kourtney just thought of the callback caption as a playful way to show off her bikini body. Trolling her sister was probably just a bonus.
