March 20, 2008

Hills Star Audrina Patridge Says She Regrets Posing For Nude Photos

By Chris Harris (MTV.com)

Before the day is over, chances are you'll end up seeing several scandalous photos of one of your favorite stars from MTV's The Hills - and no, it's not Lauren Conrad.

While there have been longstanding rumors of the existence of a Conrad sex tape, it turns out the show's real black sheep is Lauren's sidekick, Audrina Patridge. Topless and fully nude photos of The Hills regular surfaced online late Tuesday night. In a statement released to TMZ.com, Patridge said the pictures were taken long before she was a household name.

Some of the snaps feature Patridge completely topless, sporting a pink plaid schoolgirl skirt. Others depict the brunette nude in a bathtub, surrounded by candles, and there are several of her frolicking in an infinity pool.

According to Patridge, the pictures were taken soon after she graduated from high school. The aspiring model had done several bikini photo shoots, but decided to set her sights on Playboy.

"I took these photos years ago, when I was just out of high school and beginning to model," she said in her statement. "I was young and very trusting of others, and I didn't know to protect myself. It is a lesson learned, for myself, and hopefully for the young girls who look up to me."

Patridge's statement echoes the one issued by High School Musical star Vanessa Hudgens after several fully-nude photos of the actress surfaced in September. Hudgens wasted no time confirming their authenticity, and quickly apologized to her fans, "whose support and trust means the world to me," she said.