Getty Andy Cohen and Johnny Bananas
Johnny “Bananas” Devenanzio isn’t on this season of The Challenge but he was quick to call out Andy Cohen this week after he thought the talk show host was excluding MTV from a docu-series about reality TV. Cohen announced a special documentary series titled “For Real: The Story of Reality TV,” which would dive into iconic reality TV shows and have “candid conversations” with some of the genre’s top stars.
While the talk show host and producer did not reveal which shows would be included, the trailer featured clips from several classic shows like Big Brother, Survivor, American Idol, Jersey Shore and Keeping Up With the Kardashians. Johnny Bananas responded to the announcement and said, “Creating ‘The Story of Reality TV’ and excluding The @RealWorldMTV @ChallengeMTV is like re-writing the Bible and excluding the first 2 chapters @Andy @eentertainment @MTV.”
Creating “The Story of Reality TV” and excluding The @RealWorldMTV @ChallengeMTV is like re-writing the Bible and excluding the first 2 chapters 🤯📖 @Andy @eentertainment @MTV
Cohen responded to the reality TV star and said that MTV would be a major part of the show and he’d be hosting a reunion of the cast of the first season of The Real World, which was set in New York City (the cast also reunited for a separate revival of The Real World set to air on March 4).
Bananas answered Cohen, “Okay I stand corrected Andrew… I may have jumped the gun a tad as it relates to THE REAL WORLD. However excluding @ChallengeMTV is still a glaring omission. That’s like opening a petting zoo and forgetting to include the GOAT,” he said alongside a goat and banana emoji.
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Bananas Also Clapped Back at Fans Who Responded to His Conversation With Cohen & Costar Ashley Mitchell Chimed In
@Andy Did you call @johnnybananas bc if you talking reality TV you’re not telling the full story with out the 👑
Bananas’ costar, two-time champion Ashley Mitchell, was quick to respond to Cohen’s original announcement and said, “Did you call @johnnybananas [because] if you talking reality TV you’re not telling the full story with out the [king],” she said, adding the crown emoji. Bananas responded to Ashley’s tweet and said, “A true crime against the crown.”
He also clapped back at a fan who said, “Oh no. That one trick reality pony better not be coming for daddy!!” Bananas replied, “20+ seasons spanning over 15 years on 4 networks. On your screen consecutively for longer than any personality in Reality Television history… Girl I got more tricks than @davidblaine.”
Bananas Is Taking Some Time Off From The Challenge But Has Not Announced His Retirement
The Challenge: Double Agents is ongoing but it’s the first season in many years without the reality TV legend Johnny Bananas. After his seventh Challenge victory on Total Madness, the star took a season off from the show but never made a formal retirement announcement. After his win, he told the Us Weekly podcast he’s “just getting warmed up.”
He said he did think about retiring as soon as the season was done because of how difficult it had been and said he thought he’d seen his last Challenge. However, as he watched the season airing and thought about his time on the show, he said he changed his mind: “If anything, I’ve just proven to myself and everyone else out there that I still have exactly what it takes to compete at an incredibly high level,” he said.
Bananas said he believes he has a lot left to bring to the show and concluded, “I’m not going anywhere anytime soon, just getting warmed up. The Real World: Key West alum appeared on a total of 20 Challenge seasons and the last 12 seasons in a row, and holds an impressive seven wins.
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The Challenge’s Johnny Bananas Calls Out Andy Cohen