Bethenny Frankel has explained why Andy Cohen didn’t want her on The Real Housewives of New York when the show first started.
The news that Andy wasn’t interested in having Bethenny as part of the Real Housewives franchise was a bit shocking to RHONY fans. After all, the SkinnyGirl mogul brought the drama and the ratings.
However, the bombshell was dropped in the newly released book Not All Diamonds and Rosé: The Inside Story of the Real Housewives from the People Who Lived It. Andy, an executive producer of the show, didn’t give Bethenny the green light at first.
Bethenny is setting the record straight and proving the drama with Andy is all water under the bridge.
What did Bethenney Frankel say about why Andy Cohen didn’t want her on RHONY?
The Real Housewives of New York alum dished about the topic on her podcast Just B With Bethenny Frankel this week.
“The reason that Bravo didn’t want me on, Andy Cohen didn’t want me on, was because I was already on a reality show. So, I had some slight, basically no, awareness. Like, I was nobody, but to him, that was, ‘You had a preexisting profile,’ meaning they wanted it to be real,” Bethenny exclaimed.
For those who can’t remember, Bethenny appeared on the first and only season of The Apprentice: Martha Stewart.
“They wanted it to be real people in New York that are not famous, that didn’t have a preexisting profile,” the reality TV star expressed.
It’s a bit of a shocking concept considering that several cast members in the Real Housewives family have appeared on television before joining the franchise.
Bethenney explains why RHOBH added famous stars to cast
Lisa Rinna, Garcelle Beauvais, Eileen Davidson, and Denise Richards had successful television careers before joining The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills. Bethenny touched on that topic, too, on her podcast.
“That’s why Lisa Rinna didn’t get on for years. Andy used to say me, no, he wasn’t interested in her, and I used to say, ‘She’d be great,'” Bethenny spilled.
Although Kyle Richards and Kim Richards were on RHOBH from day one, they were child stars and hadn’t acted in years. Plus, many people knew them as Kathy Hilton’s sisters.
The real reason Andy Cohen didn’t want Bethenny Frankel to be on RHONY was that he wanted to show to be real, with no recognizable famous people. In the end, he didn’t win the battle, and Bethenny helped put the reality TV show on the map.
These days the concept of Real Housewives being real or not having a preexisting profile doesn’t exist. The shows have taken on a new form as the franchises have exploded with success.
The Real Housewives of New York is currently on hiatus on Bravo.