Heavy/Getty Andy Cohen reveals a RHONY casting secret.
In his new book, “The Daddy Diaries,” Andy Cohen revealed that he received a phone call at 6:30 a.m. from someone who wanted to be on the “Real Housewives.”
At the time, he was thinking he was getting baby news — he was expecting his second child at the time — and was surprised to hear Wendy Williams’ voice on the other end of the phone. On the May 26, 2023, episode of the “B**** Sesh” podcast, Cohen opened up about the phone call he received from the former talk show host.
“There’s a section where Wendy is calling me a lot. She wanted to be on RHONY, she decided. Which, in a day, wouldn’t have been the worst idea. But not this day,” Cohen said.
Here’s what you need to know:
Andy Cohen Thinks There Was a Point in Time When Wendy Williams Would Have Been a ‘Brilliant’ Addition to “The Real Housewives of New York’
In “The Daddy Diaries,” Cohen digs a bit deeper into Williams’ apparent desire to join the popular Bravo franchise. The call came in April 2022.
“Had this call come a year earlier, it would’ve been a brilliant idea,” he writes, according to Hollywood Life.
“If she is struggling with mental health issues, though, this isn’t the time. Her enthusiasm was infectious, though when I was explaining the idea of Legacy and the brand-new show, she just wanted to focus on the last version. So the conversation didn’t go anywhere,” Cohen added.
Cohen explained that Williams wanted to be part of the RHONY reboot, which has been officially recasted for season 14.
The New Season of RHONY Is Set to Premiere in July
On July 16, 2023, Bravo fans will officially get to meet the all-new cast of “The Real Housewives of New York City.”
The new cast of the show, including Sai De Silva, Ubah Hassan, Erin Dana Lichy, Jessel Taank, Jenna Lyons, Brynn Whitfield, and Lizzy Savetsky, was officially announced at BravoCon in October 2022. However, Savetsky has since exited the show, according to People magazine.
Cohen and other Bravo executives made the decision to recast the show after an intense season 13. All of the original cast members were replaced for the new series.
However, Bravo has since announced that some of the OGs will be filming a season of “Ultimate Girls Trip” together. On May 15, 2023, the network confirmed that Kelly Bensimon, Luann de Lesseps, Dorinda Medley, Sonja Morgan, Ramona Singer, and Kristen Taekman will be heading to St. Barths for some fun (and drama) in the sun. No premiere date has been released but the new season is expected to air sometime in 2024.
As for Williams, she still hasn’t landed a role on any Bravo show. She is, however, planning on releasing a new podcast. Despite reports that Williams’ project had been canceled, her rep has confirmed that it’s still very much in the works.
“We are still working behind the scenes on several projects. There has been no official cancellation of the podcast,” Williams’ publicist, Shawn Zanotti, told Page Six in March 2023.
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Andy Cohen Reveals the Surprising Person Who Wanted to Join the ‘Real Housewives’