Nick Viall and wife Natalie Joy are facing criticism over the way they questioned Austen Kroll about his older sister’s traumatic death.
The “Southern Charm” star appeared on the couple’s podcast, “The Viall Files,” Wednesday. The questioning started when Joy awkwardly brought up Kroll’s sister Kyle, who died during a family hiking trip when she was 9 years old after she fell off a cliff.
Joy told Kroll, “Quickly jumping out of ‘Southern Charm,’ I’m sure we’re gonna jump right back into it, but going into your childhood, I didn’t know this about your sister passing at 9.”
Kroll replied, “Okay we are switching gears.”
Joy continued to ask more personal questions, including what age he was when the tragedy happened, to which Kroll replied that he was 7.
Viall later asked if Kroll’s younger sister, Katie — who was born a year and a half after Kyle died — had a spiritual connection with her older sister that she never got to meet. Kroll said he’s never asked her but that he was sure Katie did.
At this point, Joy jumped in to ask the Bravo star if he was there when his sister fell and after he replied yes, she asked for specifics.
“What was this cliff?” she asked.
Kroll looked uncomfortable as he shook his leg repeatedly and declined to name the town where the incident took place. He further added that the town was wiped out by a hurricane.
“There was no love lost with my family on that one,” he said.
Fans and fellow Bravo celebs slammed Viall and Joy on social media for the line of questioning.
Kroll’s “Southern Charm” co-star Rodrigo Reyes commented of Joy, “She’s a POS.”
“The Valley” star Janet Caperna commented in an Instagram post criticizing the interview, “This was so f–ked…even for them.”
Another commenter said, “‘What was this cliff?” Did she seriously ask that.”
Some fans were mad on Kroll’s behalf.
“The way I was RAGING when I saw the clip about his sister. How dare they!!!” one fan wrote.
Another fan noted, “I was actually mad for him. He handled it like a gentleman.”
Kroll’s rep declined to comment when reached by Page Six.
