Christina Haack Says Her Tearful Confessions to Ex Tarek El Moussa on The Flip Off Wasn’t ‘Intentional’: ‘It All Just Came Out’ (Exclusive)

• Exes Christina Haack and Tarek El Moussa have a heart-to-heart during the series premiere of their new HGTV show, The Flip Off
• Christina says the emotional moment wasn’t planned and that the conversation was raw and authentic
• The co-parents have come a long way since their marriage “imploded” in 2016, and they now star on the show together with Tarek’s current wife, Heather El Moussa

Christina Haack is clarifying one important detail about the emotional conversation she had with her ex Tarek El Moussa on The Flip Off.

The HGTV star, 41, revealed to PEOPLE during an exclusive interview that the intense discussion she and her first ex-husband, Tarek El Moussa, had during the Jan. 29 series premiere of their new house flipping competition series was not planned.

Christina confirms that all of the raw emotion viewers saw between her and Tarek during the scene was completely authentic.

While the show’s producer asked her to break the news to Tarek that she had officially split from her third husband, Josh Hall, Christina says the rest of their candid confessions to each other “[weren’t] even intentional.”

She notes that when Tarek arrived at her Newport Beach, Calif. home, she was in an extremely vulnerable state. Everything she’d been bottling up since she and Tarek split in December 2016 “just came out,” she tells PEOPLE.

“When [Tarek] came over, I had been dealing with this in real-time for a week or two, and so I was just emotional, hadn’t been sleeping,” she says, referring to the immediate aftermath of Josh filing for divorce in July 2024. “And so he walks in and then I just like, it all just came out.”

She explains, “None of it was intentional, but I think it was definitely healing for both of us. And I think some closure for viewers that have watched us since our mid-twenties and just seeing the real raw moment. It was very authentic and it wasn’t planned.”

Christina and Tarek first met in 2005 when Tarek was 24 and Christina was 22. They built their house-flipping business together, which was documented on their hit HGTV show Flip or Flop, which ran from 2013 to 2022.

After seven years of marriage, the former couple’s relationship came to an end in 2016 following a scary incident that involved Tarek fleeing their California home with a gun.

During the premiere, the pair dive deeper into what went wrong in their marriage, leading to a heartwarming apology from both parties.

“I know we’re in a good place now,” Christina tells Tarek during the emotional scene. “But yeah, we went through a lot of stuff. I don’t think anyone understands just how much stuff we went through. We met when we were so young.”

She continues, “When our stuff imploded, I felt like not only did I lose… we were best friends, but also I felt like I lost like, I need to be a full-time mom. And that really, really, really hurt me a lot and really affected me.”

The pair share two children together — daughter Taylor, 14, and son Brayden, 9. Christina also shares son Hudson, 5, with her second husband Ant Anstead, while Tarek has a two-year-old son named Tristan with his wife Heather Rae El Moussa (who also stars on The Flip Off).

Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. 

In response to his ex’s confession, Tarek says, “I understand that feeling of being a little bit lost. And I acknowledge that I’m a big part, if not the entire part, of all of this.”

“I’m really sorry for s—. I really am. I just want you to know that,” Christina adds as she wipes a tear from her face. She continues to say “I’m sorry” as Tarek reaches out his hand and places it on her knee.

When Christina asks if Tarek can forgive her, he tearfully responds, “A hundred percent. I did a lot of things too. I hold zero against you.”

The Flip Off airs Wednesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on HGTV.