KEY POINTS

  • Kyle Richards thought that her niece Paris Hilton's sex tape would ruin the socialite's career back in 2004 
  • The video featured a 19-year-old Paris and her then-boyfriend, Rick Salomon
  • Hilton sued the company that distributed the sex tape for $30 million

Paris Hilton’s sex tape leak back in 2004 left her family "devastated," her aunt Kyle Richards has revealed.

During a guest appearance on "Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen" on Wednesday, the “Real Housewives of Beverly Hills” star opened up about her reaction to the violation of her niece's privacy more than 15 years ago. Reportedly filmed in 2001, the intimate video featured Hilton and her then-boyfriend, Rick Salomon, who was Pamela Anderson’s ex-husband.

Host Andy Cohen asked Richards about her initial thoughts after finding out that Hilton’s sex tape leaked.

"When your niece Paris' tape was leaked, did you initially think it would ruin her career or help catapult her star power?" the host asked during the virtual interview.

"Ruin. We were devastated. Like my whole — it was horrible,” Richards, who is the half-sister of Hilton’s mom, Kathy, replied.

Ex-boyfriend Salomon, who filmed the rendezvous when they were still dating, reportedly sold the sex tape to Red Light District Video. The company then released the intimate video under the title "One Night in Paris."

Salomon sued the rich clan for accusing him of taking advantage of Hilton, who was only 19 when the poker player recorded their deed. Hilton also sued the company that distributed the sex tape for $30 million, another People article said.

At the time, Hilton claimed that the intimate video was "intended only for personal use." However, a Los Angeles judge dismissed the case in 2004, and the suit was settled as the celebrity reportedly agreed to take a cut of the financial gain from distributing the sex tape.

In 2018, Hilton opened up about how the video and the scandal affected her life in the documentary, "The American Meme." The socialite also revealed how the conversations regarding her sex tape had made her feel that everyone was laughing at her.

"It felt like I'd lost part of my soul and been talked about in such cruel and mean ways. I literally wanted to die at some points. I was like, 'I just don't want to live,' because I thought everything was taken away from me. I didn’t want to be known as that," Hilton said, USA Today reported.

Paris Hilton
Paris Hilton is pictured arriving at the Fashion For Relief Cannes event on May 13, 2018, at Cannes Mandelieu Aeroport, southern France. Yann Coatsaliou/AFP/Getty Images