NEWS'It Was a Win-Win': Spencer Pratt Confesses to Leaking Mary-Kate Olsen's Teen Party Photos for $50K
Spencer Pratt admitted he sold Mary-Kate Olsen's teen party photos for $50K, calling the move a 'win-win.'
Jan. 27 2026, Published 12:44 p.m. ET
Spencer Pratt owned up to one of his most controversial pre-Hills moves.
In his new memoir, The Guy You Loved to Hate: Confessions from a Reality TV Villain, the reality star revealed that he once sold private teenage photos of Mary-Kate Olsen to the press for $50,000.
'Photo Shrine'
Spencer Pratt confessed in his new memoir to selling private teen photos of Mary-Kate Olsen to the press for $50,000.
The incident took place in the early 2000s, when Pratt was a student in Santa Monica and moving in celebrity circles that included Olsen and her then-boyfriend, Max Winkler, the son of actor Henry Winkler.
At the time, Spencer said he was desperate for money to fund a film project and saw an opportunity in what he described as a bedroom "photo shrine" Max kept of Mary-Kate following their breakup.
"I asked Max if I could take the photos off his wall — you know, for his healing process," Spencer wrote, per a news outlet. "He didn't say no, so I took that to be a yes."
'Teens Gone Wild!'
The reality star said the photos were taken while Mary-Kate Olsen was dating Max Winkler in the early 2000s.
Spencer said he later visited the Winkler family home, briefly greeting Henry on his way in, and left with the entire collection of images.
He ultimately sold the photos to a photo agency for $50,000 — a sum that made him feel "rich" at the time.
"Less than a week later, there it was, evidence of my entrepreneurial genius staring back at me from the In Touch cover at a gas station: 'TEENS GONE WILD!' across the cover," he wrote.
"A shot of Mary-Kate with a constellation of empties — 'LOOK AT ALL THE EMPTIES!' — and there I was in the background, frozen mid-shaka. I hadn't sold that frame. Someone else was shopping, and now I wasn't just the seller, I was part of the merchandise," he continued. "My face was now forever linked to Mary-Kate Olsen's supposed wild phase, preserved in grocery store checkout lines across America."
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'Win-Win'
Pratt defended his actions in the book, calling the decision a 'win-win.'
Despite the backlash, Spencer defended his actions in the book.
"When you really think about it, it was a win-win. Mary-Kate got her rebel rebrand, Max got closure," he wrote in his memoir, out January 27.
Were Mary-Kate Olsen and Spencer Pratt Friends?
Mary-Kate Olsen has not publicly addressed Spencer Pratt's recent claims about the leaked photos.
Mary-Kate has not publicly commented on Spencer's latest claims, though she made her feelings about him clear during a 2008 appearance on The Late Show with David Letterman.
"He does not have a good temper. He walked out of a few games, he'd walk off the field," she said of Spencer playing soccer at her school.
When asked if she and Spencer had been friends, she replied, "No."
