Ryan Seacrest got President Biden to talk about all the chicken parmesan he ate over the holidays while Andy Cohen and Anderson Cooper revealed whether they ever need to pee during the show, as both ABC and CNN rang in the new year with their annual specials.
President Biden and his wife, Dr. Jill Biden, appeared on Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest to talk ice cream, job growth and the country’s recovery from the pandemic. “I feel good that the American people got up,” the President said about 2023. “They’re back.”
The ABC show co-hosted Rita Ora also featured performances by L.L. Cool J, Cardi B, Megan Thee Stallion, Green Day, Jelly Roll, Sabrina Carpenter and Tyla.
Over on CNN, Anderson Cooper and Andy Cohen took boozy shots while chatting with the likes of Bridget Everett, Henry Winkler, Eva Longoria, Bowen Yang and Jeremy Renner — the latter of whom appeared via Zoom from Reno, Nev. on the eve of the anniversary of his snow plow accident. He came on to talk about his new music that was inspired by his devastating accident, as well as how he will “literally go back in a week” to work on the third season of Mayor of Kingstown.
“It’s been a wonderfully busy year,” he said. “I think I’m ready. I think I’m strong enough” to return to set, he added.
Then Cohen’s parents, Evelyn and Lou, came on to ask where their son goes number one while shooting the New Years specials. Both men admitted they’ve never had to pee while filming the annual specials, though Anderson said there is a nearby porta-potty in Times Square.
“I was actually starting to think during that interview with Jeremy Renner that if I peed in my pants no one would notice, because no one can see my pants,” said Cohen, drawing a look of shock from Cooper.
Mostly, the best reason to tune into CNN on New Year’s Eve is to hear Cooper let loose with those high-pitched giggles, like when John Mayer came on from a cat cafe in Tokyo.
