The lawsuits surrounding Bravo have been quite a mess. And although it’s had some people talking about the state of reality television as a whole, others are defending it.
Luann de Lesseps from The Real Housewives of New York spoke with Us Weekly about her journey filming the show while remaining sober. “Nobody is forced to do anything on the show,” she said, seemingly referring to Leah McSweeney’s bombshell lawsuit against the network. In it, she alleged that producers encouraged her to drink on camera so that the network could capture her relapse.
“Bravo has always been very supportive of my sobriety in and out of sobriety,” Luann said. “So, like I said, everybody has their experience. It’s never been my experience, nor has it been a lot of the Housewives experiences.”
Luann says Andy Cohen keeps it professional
In addition to the claims made by Leah above, she also accused Andy Cohen of giving favorable edits to the Housewives he does cocaine with. Andy and his reps have since denied these allegations.
“That is not [in] Andy’s character,” Luann explained. “I know Andy. I’ve known him for years, and it’s not in his character.”
Brandi Glanville is another former Real Housewives star who has made severe claims against Bravo and its figurehead. In a letter from Brandi’s attorneys, they accused Andy of using his power to have “complete and total control over her career.”
Further, she claimed the Watch What Happens Live host sent her a video in 2022 asking to sleep with her and another Bravo star. Andy replied to the statements, saying the video was in “jest.” However, he did apologize and called his actions “inappropriate.”
Luann, who first appeared on RHONY in 2008, said Andy has always remained well-mannered around her, saying they have a “very professional relationship.”
Rumors began circulating that Andy and Bravo were negotiating an exit deal for the icon amid the lawsuits and negative press. Despite this, a rep from the network called the statements false, adding that Andy was here to stay.