Andy Cohen was not shying away from the hottest topics on the table at BravoCon 2023 as he addressed everything from Kyle Richards and Mauricio Umansky‘s divorce to his own dating life.
Talking with ET’s Brice Sander from BravoCon 2023, Cohen, 55, gave insight on what’s to come for fans of the various Real Housewives shows and discussed the biggest moments from the previous year, including headlines like Kyle and Mauricio’s split.
Contrary to reports, Cohen said the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills was not on a filming hiatus when news broke of their separation in July. Initial reports indicated that Bravo resumed filming for the series to document the aftermath of the bombshell split.
“We were already capturing it, it was a topic for the entire season,” Cohen told ET. “When news broke that they were separating — I mean this was very much happening as the show was going. You will see.”
The Bravolebrity went on to add that while they were in fact filming as the split became public, it would certainly have been big enough news to get the cameras back up and running during a filming break.
“Kyle is a huge part of the Bravo family and we’ve been following her story for 13, 14 years,” Cohen said. “Yeah, so this was a big one.”
Sitting down with ET on day 2 of BravoCon, Kyle said that the split has been tough on her and everyone involved but that they are working through it and are staying “amicable” for the time being.
“All I know is we love each other. We still live under the same roof and we both want the best for each other,” she said. “I am so happy that it is amicable right now and I hope it stays that way,” noting that she and Umansky are “Just taking it a day at a time and putting our family first.”
Another major point of interest the TV host hit on was the explosive falling out between Real Housewives of New Jersey castmates and sisters-in-law Teresa Guidice and Melissa Gorga. The 14th season will continue with both women but has been described as a “show divided.”
“We took a gamble by just bringing everyone back and seeing how everyone would roll,” he said. “I mean you do truly have two families that hate each other’s guts and it’s, you know, two factions of people.”
During the season 13 reunion, Guidice told Gorga, 44, that she couldn’t wait to “never f**king look” at her face again. Then, in an interview with ET, Guidice, 51, said she’s “not even thinking about” reconciling with her brother and his wife.
Gorga spoke with ET at BravoCon and echoed Cohen’s sentiments about the show having two sides as it goes into its 14th season.
“It’s unfortunate. There is not a real team happening here so it’s just it is what it is,” she said, adding that they are still managing to work through filming despite their differences and history.
Cohen also answered a question atop the minds of millions of fans: Why did Real Housewives of New York star Jenna Lyons skip BravoCon?
Lyons, 55, was the only member of the RHONY cast to skip the panel at the Las Vegas event, as her fellow Housewives Sai De Silva, Ubah Hassan, Erin Lichy, Jessel Taank and Brynn Whitfield all came to the stage.
Her absence prompted fans to speculate on her future with the show and what is in store for the next season.
Cohen, however, told ET that fans should not jump to conclusion or worry just quite yet about her going anywhere because the network still has a great relationship with her.
“Her not being a BravoCon is not any great statement on her relationship to the show or with us,” the entertainer shared. “We have a great relationship and I hope she comes back. You know, I hope she comes back.”
As for the potential for more Real Housewives shows in the future, Cohen said that he thinks it’s okay to take a beat and stick with the whopping 10 shows already in production.
Bravo currently runs shows out of Orange County, New York, Atlanta, New Jersey, Dubai, Beverly Hills, Miami, Potomac and Salt Lake City. The network also recently launched Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip.
“Every time Bravo calls and says, ‘what do you think about developing here or there,’ I do feel like we’re very good right now,” he said, laughing.
“You might laugh at me if I say we don’t want to oversaturate the market because there are 10,” Cohen joked. “I think we’re very good right now. It’s a good moment in Housewives world.”
In terms of his love life, it would appear the Watch What Happens Live host didn’t have much news to report in the dating department.
“Well, I have found the two greatest loves of my life with my kids,” Cohen said.
The Bravo host welcomed son Ben, 4, in February 2019 and daughter Lucy, 1, in April 2022 with the help of a surrogate.
Despite having found “the two greatest loves” of his life with his children, he said he is not giving up on romantic love, as well.
“Listen, dude, I am on Hinge, Grindr, Tinder and Raya,” Cohen joked. “Something’s gotta hit. My number’s gotta hit here.”
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