Bethenny Frankel is going viral after slamming Kelly Rowland for having “diva expectations” after the singer walked off the set of the ‘TODAY’ show due to dressing room issues.
As we previously shared, Page Six reported that Rowland abruptly walked off the set because of issues she faced with her lackluster greenroom; she reportedly was promised one thing and experienced another.
RELATED: Kelly Rowland Allegedly Walked Off The ‘TODAY’ Show Due To Her Dressing Room Not Being Up To Par
On Thursday morning (February 15), the R&B singer and actress was scheduled as a guest on the 8 a.m. hour of ‘TODAY,’ where she promoted her Tyler Perry-produced Netflix film ‘Mea Culpa,’ in which she stars and is also a producer. Rowland was then expected to fill in as a guest host for Jenna Bush Hager in the fourth hour (10 a.m.) for her segment with Hoda Kotb, ‘TODAY with Hoda & Jenna.’
However, before filling in as guest host, Rowland suddenly dropped out and walked off the set “because her dressing room wasn’t up to par,” per Page Six. The outlet reported that a larger dressing room on the floor above was occupied by singer and actress Jennifer Lopez, who arrived at the studio ahead of Rowland to promote her new album, ‘This Is Me… Now‘ and accompanying visual album, ‘This Is Me… Now: The Greatest Love Story Never Told.’
After Rowland’s abrupt exit, Kotb was left scrambling to find a last-minute replacement, which ended up being singer Rita Ora, who reportedly happily volunteered to host and occupy a dressing room similar to the one briefly used by Rowland.
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Sources familiar with the situation told Page Six, “Kelly and her team were not happy. They did not like the dressing room, so they decided to pull her off the show, leaving [Kotb] without a guest host for the 10 a.m. hour.”
A source added that Rowland’s quick exit left everyone puzzled because, explaining, “She’s beloved at ‘TODAY.’ She was getting the full hour, and Hoda’s the biggest hype woman on the planet! It made no sense.” It’s also reported that before Rowland made her exit, she and her team played “musical dressing rooms” because “they didn’t like the one she was in.”
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To this point, it’s reported that the dressing rooms at ‘TODAY‘ are known to be some of the smallest in the TV industry and often jokingly referred to as “glorified closets.” A source claimed, “They’re not nice. It’s the oldest building. There are major space limitations, [it’s] not glamorous. It’s not fresh flowers, and candles, and gourmet food. It’s basically [a] white box.”
With this in mind, it’s reported that producers offered Rowland several other options, including various talent dressing rooms and other areas to fit makeup and hair set-ups. The source added, “They didn’t want that. [The show] basically offered up as much as possible, but they weren’t happy with it, so they walked and they left.”
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Since the viral situation, former ‘Real Housewives of New York City‘ star Bethenny Frankel joined the rest of social media to react to the news. In a since-deleted TikTok video, Frankel slammed Kelly Rowland for her “diva expectations” on the ‘TODAY‘ show.
Frankel said, “I’ve co-hosted with Hoda [Kotb] and I’ve arrived there and the makeup area that you touch up in is often a drop cloth, like, a black drop off. And then your dressing room is the size of a closet and you’re trying to fit all your people in the clown car. And you know what? You’re so excited. You’re so gracious. You’re co-hosting on the ‘TODAY’ show, an institution in entertainment, a news organization that is not about fancy dressing rooms.”
As the Page Six source noted about the dressing room sizes at ‘TODAY,’ Frankel echoed the comments and said that the makeup area “is completely communal,” and added that the food isn’t that great either. However, she said it should be “an honor” to just be present and hosting with Kotb. Frankel added, “That was not the moment for diva expectations.”
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