Paris Hilton said she was "emotional" after hearing an apology from comedian Sarah Silverman on Thursday for cruelly mocking her at the 2007 MTV Movie Awards.
As the host during the awards ceremony, Silverman targeted the attending hotel heiress with a lewd joke the same night Hilton turned herself in to begin her jail term for violating probation for a reckless driving charge in 2006.
Silverman said of Hilton at the time:
"I heard that to make her feel comfortable in prison, the guards are going to paint the bars to look like penises. I just worry that she's gonna break her teeth on those things."
During Friday's impromptu episode of herThis Is Paris podcast, Hilton said she was given a text with a link to an article of Silverman's apology to her.
Hilton then listened to the comedian's eight-and-a-half minute apology on the comedian's own podcast and said:
"I was just shocked when I read [her apology] at first and pleasantly surprised…She was so genuine and so sweet and it really moved me."
"I felt just emotional hearing it and I could tell that she really did mean what she said when she was apologizing."
She added:
"I got a little teary-eyed."
In an earlier podcast, Hilton and her sister, Nicky, recalled the humiliation the former reality star endured that night when Silverman made the joke at her expense.
Hilton described Silverman's comment as "so disgusting and so cruel and mean," adding:
"I was so shocked and surprised because I'd actually met her a few years before when I was at an event and she couldn't be nicer. So sweet."
"I knew I was about to check myself into jail in a couple hours [so I was] trying to be brave."
She said she was trying to be strong while she sat there amongst the laughing audience.
"I had tears welling in my eyes, I wanted to run out of the entire room, but I just was trying to be strong and sit there, and the whole audience is laughing and she would not stop."
"It was so painful, especially with what I was going through in my life, to then have people be so mean about it. It was really hard."
Upon hearing Hilton's comments, Silverman said on Thursday's The Sarah Silverman Podcast how horrible she felt the moment she made the joke.
"The crowd went bananas and while I was thrilled at the success of my monologue I remember spotting her in the audience. I really do."
"And I remember seeing that look on her face and my heart sank. Because there was a person under there."
"And a couple days later I wrote her a letter apologizing. I felt awful."
"I never heard back," she said of her letter of apology.
"I certainly wouldn't expect to anyway, but on her podcast the other day, she said she never heard from me which just bums me out, because I guess it never got to her."
"I don't know how that happened. I'm just real sorry my note didn't get to her because I really meant it."
Realizing the letter never reached Hilton, Silverman added:
"So, here I am, 14 years later, telling you, Paris, that I am really sorry. I was then and I am, much more completely and with far more understanding, I think, now."
The School of Rock actress concluded her segment by admitting her "understanding of humanity through the lens of my work as a comedian had not yet merged" at that time.
" Comedy is not evergreen. We can't change the past so what's crucial is that we change with the times. I can imagine Paris is probably reflecting and apologizing for stuff and I say good on her for that."
"We both played mean characters and they had our real names. So Paris, I hope that you accept my apology and I hope that you feel my remorse."
"I felt it the second I saw your face that night. It feels terrible to know that you have hurt someone and it's important to make it right so I hope this does that."
Hilton accepted Silverman's apology on Friday's podcast and added "Apologies are never late."
"Thank you. I really appreciate you doing that," she said.
"I know it's difficult for anyone to apologize, and for someone to do that really means a lot."
She ended the podcast by saying she can start with a "clean, fresh slate" with Silverman going forward.
