From Dorit Kemsley vs. Kyle Richards to the latest Bravo reunion tapings, Us Weekly caught up with Andy Cohen to chat Housewives hot topics, New Year’s Eve and more.
Speaking to Us ahead of his Fresca Mixed holiday happy hour at Magic Hour Elephant Lounge on Monday, December 16, Cohen began with tips for his the perfect NYE party (if you aren’t hosting a live broadcast on CNN, of course).
“I would say [arrival at] 9 o’clock. I would invite more people than you think you can fit in your apartment because it’s New Year’s Eve and it’s crazy. And people are party hopping!” Cohen told Us. “You also want a flow to be happening through your apartment all night. So people can leave and be like, ‘Hey, I’m going to Rod’s house.’ ‘Oh, OK. See you guys later. ‘And then other people show up and they’re like, ‘Oh, we just came from this place.’ And it’s fun! I would not tell everybody who’s coming – leave a few names off the list, so it feels like they’re surprise guests. I threw a party the other night and I didn’t tell people that, like, three different old friends were coming and they were really surprised and it felt festive!”
Cohen was also passionate about lighting — “You want everyone to look beautiful. Super dim is great” — before circling back to the time.
“The reason I say after 8:30 or 9 is you don’t really have to serve food. You can just have snacks and, like, cookies and sugary things. You really need to focus on having enough spirits for everyone. And one of the reasons I love Fresca Mixed is not only because I’ve been drinking Fresca with tequila for many years, famously — I think I gave them the idea, but that’s fine — I also love it because it’s easy and they have a ton of flavors,” he said. “Your guests feel totally taken care of and they’re like, ‘Wow, you have mango citrus, you have tequila Paloma.’ And it’s like, yeah, I have whatever you want!'” (For the record, Cohen’s BFF Anderson Cooper is a tequila Paloma fan, while Cohen is currently into mango citrus.)
Keep reading to see Cohen spill the tea — or a Fresca Mixed — on the latest Bravo news:
‘RHONJ’
When asked when there’s going to be an update on the status of the Garden State, Cohen made it clear he had nothing new to share. “You’re not gonna get it for, like, a year, so everyone stop asking,” he told Us. “And I keep saying you are going to get nothing, so stop asking!”
‘RHOBH’
Over in Beverly Hills, Cohen acknowledged that fans are seeing another side of Dorit as she navigates her separation from husband PK — cigarette and all. “She’s at a fork in her life and she’s redefining her own life. And I think that that process isn’t a clean process,” he said. “You’re seeing that as she’s living through it.”
OG Kyle is also documenting her split from husband Mauricio on the show, but as viewers know the respective breakups aren’t bringing the two former BFFs together — yet. “Kyle’s at a similar place in her life. So I think you’re dealing with two people who are actually, I mean, I think it’s sad because they could [support each other],” Cohen said. “You will see them, at times, this season being a great support for each other. They actually weirdly need each other more now than they probably have.”
When asked his No. 1 question for the group when he shoots the reunion in the 90210, Cohen stayed mum. “I don’t want to spoil the season!”
‘RHONY’
Cohen told Us that the recent RHONY reunion taping went “really good” — and promised the pranks will not be a focus. “We talked about the pranks for about three minutes,” he confirmed before teasing more to come on the show despite fans’ criticism. “This trip from this trip to Puerto Rico is explosive all the way through. And it tees up the reunion very decisively.”
Speaking of NYC, Cohen recently revealed that he and former star Carole Radzwill made amends. “She texted me. We were conversing publicly a little bit, and she texted me privately, and then we just started texting,” he said. “Then we ran into each other. Weirdly, I’ve not seen her since she left the show — I’ve not seen her or run into her since [2018]. I [ran] into her, like, 10 days later at the Polo Bar, which was crazy. I’ve known her since the early 2000s, I think, or late 90s. So we have a long history together that predates the Housewives.”
When asked whether Carole could be part of the new cast of RHONY, Cohen said, “Funnily enough, she actually says she knows or has seen most of the new women. I know she’s known Jenna, probably, for a long time.” That said, he made it clear he wasn’t hinting at anything: “I’m not saying that. I’m just saying she knows these women.”
‘Southern Charm’
Cohen doesn’t produce Bravo programs outside of the Housewives franchise, but he does host reunions for shows like Vanderpump Rules, Below Deck and has the cast members on WWHL often. Most recently, he hosted Craig Conover to chat about the latest season of Southern Charm — and pressed the longtime Bravo star to admit to lying on camera in the last decade after he claimed he hadn’t.
“I can’t wait for the reunion. We’re gonna watch it with him — we’re gonna play the montage.” Cohen said, before clarifying that he just “made that up.”
“I can’t imagine we’re not! …We’ll see what he says,” he continued. “He always has an answer for everything.” What remains unclear is if JT Thomas will show up after claiming in November that he quit the show. “JT is a wild ride,” he added “I don’t know [what is going on with him] … but I’m a fan.”
‘VPR’
“A lot of us have DMed or texted,” Cohen told Us about the network’s plans to revamp Vanderpump Rules with a new cast. “I don’t think anyone was surprised, but it was certainly the end of an era. I was like, ‘Let me look at the oldest pictures that I have of these guys. And I went back and I posted pictures of Jax, Sandoval, Stassi and Scheana. The four of them came on WWHL at the beginning. It was just very sweet to see — they looked so young and not innocent.” When asked if Cohen has been in touch with James Kennedy, who was recently arrested for misdemeanor domestic violence earlier this month, Cohen replied, “No.”
‘RHOC’
“[It was] one of the most loved seasons of Orange County Housewives ever. And that’s 18 seasons and the highest ratings in many years, over 3 million viewers,” Cohen said when Us brought up the original franchise, which ended with Tamra Judge and Shannon Beador seemingly attempting to turn over a new leaf in their friendship. When asked if they could really turn the page, Cohen admitted, “I would never try to guess.”
Regarding “friend” Alexis Bellino‘s status with the group, Cohen offered: “Here’s the thing about the Housewives — and especially the Housewives of Orange County — that is a group of people that is always kind of weirdly in each other’s lives in some dotted line way, or running into each other at Javier’s, The Quiet Woman. She’ll always exist in the universe.”
‘RHOSLC’
Calling Angie K.‘s viral remark about high body count hair “unbelievable,” Cohen noted that he loves “seeing a Housewife in bloom.” He continued: “The thing about the Housewives of Salt Lake City, they’re all in bloom. And this is five seasons in! And this is two seasons after the conjecture was, ‘Can they survive without Jen Shah?’ And a season after the conjecture was, ‘Can they survive without Monica?’ So it’s really exciting to see.”
Us also had to ask about newcomer Britani Bateman and opting to have her as a “friend” instead of a snowflake holder. “I think at this point, especially if you look at Miami Housewives, I think the lines between ‘friend’ and Housewife, you know, have become a little blurred. I think that it means, we use you at our discretion a little differently, maybe, but I’m not sure that it matters as long as they’re part of the ensemble.”
‘RHOP’
Cohen “totally agreed” with Us that it’s been interesting to see Gizelle Bryant sans BFF Robyn Dixon on RHOP, adding, “I think Gizelle is having a great season.”
