Credit: Charles Sykes/Bravo, Vince Flores/ INSTARimages
Andy Cohen reacted to Brandi Glanville‘s sexual harassment claim on X, formerly known as Twitter, on Thursday night.
After the Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum, 51, accused him of inviting her to watch him have sex with another Bravolebrity and threatened a lawsuit against NBCUniversal, alleging she’d been “[abused]” by Bravo, the Watch What Happens Live host, 55, who Brandi gushed about just months ago, insisted the interaction was a “joke.”
“The video shows Kate Chastain and I very clearly joking to Brandi. It was absolutely meant in jest, and Brandi’s response clearly communicated she was in on the joke,” he wrote, as seen on his Instagram Story. “That said, it was totally inappropriate and I apologize.”
In addition to making claims against Andy in a legal letter sent to NBCUniversal, Bravo’s parent company, and others by her attorneys, Mark Geragos and Bryan Freedman, Brandi also threatened to sue the network over the claims she’s faced regarding what took place amid filming on the fourth season of Real Housewives: Ultimate Girls Trip.
In the letter, obtained by TMZ on February 22, Brandi’s attorneys request all potential evidence be preserved and state that Brandi has been a victim of the network’s machine.
“Over the past year, Ms. Glanville has been subjected to a vicious media campaign based on false allegations of sexual misconduct. The false narrative, which NBC and Shed Media have apparently decided to foment, arises from Ms. Glanville’s experience on ‘Ultimate Girls Trip: Morocco,’” the letter explained. “While the experience has been a nightmare for Ms. Glanville, it is far from the first time Ms. Glanville has been used and abused by NBC, Bravo, Warner Bros., and Shed Media. Indeed, Ms. Glanville has long been taken advantage of by the institutions with which she is indelibly tied personally, professionally, financially, and in the public mind.”
As fans have surely heard, Real Housewives of New Jersey alum Caroline Manzo, 62, accused Brandi of sexual misconduct, including unwanted kissing and humping, in her lawsuit against Bravo. However, in Brandi’s letter, it was noted that Caroline had been welcoming of Brandi’s behavior and consented to it.
The letter also noted that Brandi had been a “sacrificial lamb” for NBCUniversal.
As for Brandi’s claims of sexual harassment against Andy, they came just months after she praised him for his handling of her drama with Caroline.
“Andy and I have had a ton of conversations because this is the first time I’ve ever dealt with anything like this,” she recalled to Page Six last August. “This is new for me and this is scary for me. He’s been very helpful, honestly. He’s like, ‘It’s going to be what it’s going to be. Some people are going to probably see it and just say, ‘That’s Brandi being Brandi. Don’t be too hard on yourself.’”
Months later, in Brandi’s letter, Andy was described in a much different light.
“Mr. Cohen was Ms. Glanville’s boss at the time and exercised complete and total control over her career,” her attorneys stated. “This was an extraordinary abuse of power that left Ms. Glanville feeling trapped and disgusted. It is inconceivable that Mr. Cohen remains in his post in spite of this behavior and harkens back to the bad old days of Matt Lauer and NBC News when profits were prioritized over people.”
