Paris Hilton and Nicole Richie have been friends since they were toddlers, except during one "otherworldly" yearlong feud they now say was caused by tabloids "creating drama that didn't exist."

The longtime friends appeared on Wednesday's episode of the "Call Her Daddy" podcast, and conversation turned to the time they filmed season 4 of "The Simple Life" separately because their relationship had turned "sour."

"Nothing really happened," Ritchie, 43, told host Alex Cooper.

"Back then, the media was just so toxic and they loved starting feuds between people because, obviously, that sold tabloids," Hilton, 43, said. "It was mostly the media just spinning things and creating drama that didn't exist, which was normal in the 2000s. They did it with everyone."

"The Simple Life" premiered in 2003, but by the time season 4 was ready to film in late 2005, the best friends had traded barbs in the press and finally split up, filming separately. But in September 2006, Hilton broke the ice, reaching out for Ritchie's 25th birthday, and they mended their relationship.

"We didn't have the communication skills we have right now to have check-ins, which is so important," Ritchie said of their younger selves, adding that it makes her "sad to think about a time without my friend."

"I think just with all relationships, it's so important to have check-ins and to be honest and real and, you know, tender with the people that you love the most," Ritchie said.

Ritchie described the feud as "otherworldly," saying that because it was baked into "The Simple Life" it "blew up to be something that was so big that it became impossible to connect to or have any sort of real feeling around it."

The reality TV veterans are back with "Paris & Nicole: The Encore" premiering Dec. 12 on Peacock.

-- With reporting by TMX

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Paris Hilton, Nicole richie