[This story contains spoilers from episode three of The Masked Singer.]
Back in their first reality television appearance following their release from prison, after President Trump granted them a full pardon, Todd and Julie Chrisley have been revealed as the Croissants on The Masked Singer.
The unmasking moment was one that the internet guessed after their performance during the season 14 premiere last Wednesday to “Jailhouse Rock,” where the couple were dressed up as the pastries wearing black and white striped costumes.
“I think from the very beginning, we embraced it,” Julie tells The Hollywood Reporter of their Croissant personas. “I get the nod and the stripes and all that, but the costumes themselves were just so beautiful.”
The Chrisleys’ release from prison made national headlines, arriving roughly a week after Lifetime announced the family’s return to reality TV with a brand-new series. Todd and Julie were convicted of federal bank fraud and tax evasion charges; they were sentenced in November of the same year, with Todd receiving 12 years in prison plus 16 months of probation, while Julie got seven years behind bars and 16 months of probation.
Now, after being released from prison last May, the Chrisleys have returned to the spotlight. Below, they chat with THR about Trump’s advice for them post-prison, why they said yes to Masked Singer and what’s next for the infamous family (hint: more reality TV).
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This is your reintroduction into the reality TV space post-release. Why was The Masked Singer the perfect show to come on?
TODD We had received so many offers to do things, and we just were not ready. We were focusing on our family and on each other and making sure that we were very protective of the peace that we were creating. And when this offer came in, our publicist called Julie first. Julie called me and she said, “Oh my God, there’s an offer for Masked Singer.” And I said, “OK.” And she said, “What do you think?” And I said, “If you want to do it, we’ll do it. If you don’t want to do it, we don’t do it.” And she said, “I just don’t know.” Julie is very indecisive. One minute she’s this way, and the next minute it’s this way. She’ll talk herself into doing something, and then 30 minutes later, she has given you every bad case scenario that can happen with that situation. So I just finally said, “Listen, when you get your shit together and decide what we’re going to do, let me know and I’ll show up.” So that night, I got a call from the publicist, and she said, “Did Julie tell you that we’ve got this offer from Masked Singer? You’ve turned down everything else.” And I said, “Yes,” and she said, “And?” I said, “I’m waiting on Julie to tell me what she wants to do.” So Julie finally conceded and said, “I want to do it. I think it’ll be fine. It’ll just be us. We’ll have a week or so in L.A. just with us to hang out and do our own thing, with no kids, no one around us.” It was never a big deal to me. If she wanted to do it, we’d do it, and we ended up having a great time.
When you signed on and this idea of performing to the song “Jailhouse Rock” and the outfits were presented to you, what was your initial reaction?
JULIE When the outfits were presented, I fell in love with them immediately. They were so beautiful. Just the detail and, you know, I get the nod and the stripes and all that, but the costumes themselves were just so beautiful. I think from the very beginning, we embraced it.
TODD When they came at us with the croissant, we had lost Savannah’s late fiancé, Nic Kerdiles, in a motorcycle accident. Nic was French, so when that was presented to us, it was so heavy on my heart that this is a nod from Nic, this is the character that we’re going to take.
In your clue package before the performance, I believe it was Julie that said, “Everybody has had the wrong idea about the Chrisleys.” What idea do you think people have about the Chrisleys?
TODD I think so many people, they look at our life and they look at us on TV, and you know, we have had a very blessed life, and they think that we’re self-absorbed or we’re consumed with what we have, and that’s just so opposite of who we are. I mean, we don’t go on television or social media and talk about the people that we help. We don’t talk about the money that we’ve given away, or the things that we’ve done for people, because in my opinion, when you do that, you’re shaming that person just to feed your ego. And so we don’t do that. We don’t owe that to the rest of the world, so I think that people get confused.
JULIE Throughout this whole ordeal, I think they’ve gotten a little confused that we have all of the shame and we don’t. It was our story. It was an experience that we had to go through, but we came through it. And, you know, we came through it stronger and, honestly, better. It was our chance to tell our story, to let people see, okay, we’re not afraid to make fun of ourselves, but we’re going to enjoy this and have fun and bring smiles to other people.
TODD And it also brought smiles to us. Because we got to hang out with each other, we got to have a good time. I got to aggravate her every day.
JULIE Yes, because I cannot sing, he can. As I have said, the ball and chain was very appropriate, because I was kind of holding him back.
TODD We had a great time and that’s a memory. When we were apart, my memories are what sustained me. And so now I look at this chapter of memories that I’m making now, and I wouldn’t take anything in the world for that, because those are things that are indelibly etched into your mind and your heart and your spirit, and I love that that first big thing that we did was of Julie and I together.
Looking forward, you have your new reality series in the works. How is this show going to differ from Chrisley Knows Best, and also with your newfound experience of being released from prison?
TODD Everyone in the family is in the show. So it’s going to be more honest. It’s going to be more real. You’re going to get to go through the highs and the lows, and you’re going to get to experience some wonderful moments that’s happening this year in our lives, and we’re excited to share that.
Your performance on last week’s episode of Masked Singer went viral. Everybody sleuthed out that the Chrisleys are the Croissants. Have you spoken to President Trump since the clip came out?
JULIE (Laughs.)
TODD I have not. President Trump has far bigger fish to fry than croissants. We have not spoken to him. I’ve spoken to him since I got home, and he’s been lovely to us, and we’re grateful that he reunited us with our family. I’m grateful to my Lord and Savior first, I’m grateful to President Trump and our daughter Savannah, because she was a true warrior and she tapped into strength that she never knew she had, and for that we will always be grateful.
When you spoke to the president since your release, did he give you any advice for how to navigate things moving forward?
TODD It was a FaceTime. The first thing he said was, “Well, you look great.” And I said, “It’s the VOP glow.” And so he just said, “What happened to you guys was horrible.” And he said, “Should have never happened.” And he said, and I think that, there’s going to be more to come from that. And he said, “But I want you to go and live a full life. You’ve raised wonderful children. You’ve raised wonderful warriors. That’s what this country needs.” It was an emotional call. And we just shared how grateful we were to him. And he said, “Well, I want you to go and have a beautiful life.”
Do you anticipate, with the reveal coming out tonight, that you might hear from him again?
TODD AND JULIE (Laughs.)
TODD Again, I would be disappointed if I heard from the President of the United States about a performance on Masked Singer.
Moving forward, post-release, now post-Masked Singer and with your new reality show in the works, what else is next for the Chrisleys?
TODD We have five new shows that are coming out in 2026, and that’s as of now. We’re all kind of booked. Julie and Savannah’s doing a show. I’m doing a show with Chase. We’re doing a show as a family. Then Julie has her cooking show, and then I have a project that I’m doing in the U.K.
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New episodes of The Masked Singer air Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on FOX, and stream the next day on Hulu. This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.