Bravo Andy Cohen
Andy Cohen opened up about the “Real Housewives” franchise—and its massive success.
The franchise was born in 2006 with “The Real Housewives of Orange County, and since that time, spinoff shows have been set in New York, New Jersey, Beverly Hills, Miami, Potomac and more, giving jobs to hundreds of reality TV women.
RHOC recently filmed its 17th season, while New Jersey and Beverly Hills are at 13 seasons each. And during a December 2022 episode of “Watch What Happens Live”, guest Gayle King revealed that even former First Lady Michelle Obama is a fan of “The Real Housewives,” per BravoTV.com.
So what’s the secret to the franchise’s success?
Andy Cohen Revealed Why ‘The Real Housewives’ Remains a Success
BravoAndy Cohen with the cast of “The Real Housewives of Beverly Hills.”
Cohen was once an executive at Bravo, and he remains very involved in all things related to the Housewives. He recently spoke out about the massive success of the Housewives in an interview with Yahoo Finance.
“The secret sauce of ‘The Housewives’ is all in the casting,” Cohen said. “I think we’ve done a lot of great work — finding the right women and then figuring out how to keep the energy going and taking people out of the mix and putting people back in and putting new people in.”
The Bravo host also described the Housewives franchise as “a massive cultural phenomenon that shows no signs of letting up,” as well as a “brand” that viewers “care about.”
Andy Cohen Previously Revealed What Casting Directors Look for in a Real Housewife
BravoVicki Gunvalson of “The Real Housewives of Orange County.”
Cohen previously dished on some traits he and casting directors look for in a potential Housewife. “Someone who is willing to be open, live their life fully in front of the camera, someone with a point of view,” he said, per The Sun. “[They] won’t be run over and will open their lives up to the camera and share something we haven’t seen.”
He also said Housewives should be humorous. “I think funny goes a long way,” Cohen said on “The Today Show” in October 2022. “I don’t think the Housewives would still be going 16 years later if there wasn’t a great sense of humor and originality and the ability to lead your life openly in front of the cameras. Those are all really great hallmarks of a great Housewife.”
Cohen told Paper magazine that he looks to cast women who are “unique and interesting to watch.” “Someone who has something to say, and is different, surprising and just watchable,” he added. “There’s a fine line between people who are desperate to be on reality television and people who you want to watch on reality television.”
He also noted that there is barely a line between an icon and an unwatchable cast member. “The Venn diagram of desperation and watchable, it’s a very slim thing in the middle where it overlaps, and you’re like, ‘That’s the bullseye, that’s NeNe Leakes, that’s Vicki [Gunvalson], that’s Bethenny [Frankel],” Cohen revealed.
In addition, the Housewives star’s family situation is taken into consideration during the casting process. According to Bustle, Housewives producer Ryan Flynn once said he wants to know what a regular day looks like for the top choices on his casting list. “You know [we] meet husbands, meet kids, meet friends … you know, what does that life look like?” he added.
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Andy Cohen Reveals ‘Secret’ to ‘Real Housewives’ Success