Andy Cohen Says He ‘Absolutely’ Supports Bravo’s Decision To Fire ‘Vanderpump Rules’ Stars Amid Racism Scandal
Andy Cohen says he agrees with Bravo’s decision to fire four main Vanderpump Rules cast members.
One day after Bravo announced the stunning firings of series veterans Stassi Schroeder and Kristen Doute, as well as newcomers Max Boyens and Brett Caprioni over their past racially insensitive behavior, Cohen broke his silence on the scandal on his SiriusXM show, Radio Andy.
“There’s so much happening in the Bravo universe,” Cohen told his listeners, per E! News. “I will say this: so much talk about Vanderpump Rules and then of course the reunion ended up airing last night. I will say this about what happened. I absolutely support Bravo’s decision, I think it was the right decision.”
Cohen added that he has been getting a ton of tweets and messages about Vanderpump Rules and Southern Charm, both of which feature controversial cast members.
“I’m not in charge of programming at Bravo anymore,” Cohen said. “I am not an Executive Producer of Vanderpump Rules. I don’t have anything to do with the show except I love it and that I host the reunions. I don’t produce the show so what I want people to know is I have no say in hiring and firing.”
While he has no say in firing, during the recent Vanderpump Rules reunion, Cohen put show star Lisa Vanderpump on the spot by asking her why she didn’t immediately fire new cast members Boyens and Caprioni when their decade-old racist tweets resurfaced earlier this year.
In a line that now seems prophetic, Vanderpump admitted that if she fired everyone who made a past mistake, none of the cast would have a job, per Page Six. The Vanderpump Rules queen bee explained that she’s “never seen any inkling” of anything that would make her believe her employees have racist beliefs now, and she added, “And if I had, they wouldn’t be working for me.”
On social media, Cohen has been under fire for “allowing” racist and homophobic cast members to appear on Bravo reality shows, even though he has nothing to do with casting decisions.
Cohen is the head honcho on Watch What Happens Live, though. This week, he hosted a two-part special episode of the late-night chatfest featuring Real Housewives of Atlanta alum Porsha Williams and activist W. Kamau Bell as they discussed the Black Lives Matter movement and the systematic changes that are needed in the aftermath of the tragic death of George Floyd, per Bravo.
