Andy Cohen Responds To Claim That He's "Ageist" After Tamra Judge And Vicki Gunvalson Got Fired

You never know what’s going to happen when you give Brandi Glanville a mic. Andy Cohen now knows that better than anyone. She put him in the hot seat on the latest episode of her podcast, and it did not disappoint. Naturally, they discussed RHOBH and Denise Richards‘ exit after two seasons. Brandi is still miffed that she has no real opening to get back on the show with Denise gone.

However, it was the topic of Real Housewives of Orange County that caught Andy off guard. He wasn’t at all expecting the bomb Brandi was about to drop on him. As most people know by now, Tamra Judge and Vicki Gunvalson will NOT be back for the new season. If you ask Brandi, they might think it has something to do with their age. Down the rabbit hole we go.

According to US Weekly, Brandi said, “I felt like [Vicki and Tamra told their entire stories and they both said that [you are] an ageist.” That is one bold accusation. That’s not a good look at all if it’s true. There’s no place for discrimination of any kind on television or anywhere for that matter.

Brandi continued, saying, “They said you were going against them because they got too old.” I find that difficult to believe. Many of the women on Housewives are in the same age bracket as Tamra and Vicki. At least that’s how it’s coming off. Do they realize they come off as disgruntled employees?

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Andy jumped to the same thought that I had and pointed out that longtime cast member Ramona Singer is actually older than Vicki. BINGO. It was the end of the road for Vicki. Tamra was more of a shock than Vicki. I think she could’ve gone a few more seasons. However, the entire Tres Amigas storyline was grating and maddening, and it had a chokehold on the show.

Andy said, “If you look at the women on our shows, there are a lot of women that are really thriving in their 50s and late 50s. Yeah, no. I don’t care for that [remark].” It’s kind of awful to throw that accusation out there at someone. Accusing someone of something like that in the days of cancel culture is so dangerous. What a horrible look.

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What more did they have to offer us? How many times could we watch Vicki and Tamra fall out and make up? It was a repetitive cycle that was tiring. The show needed a revamp. It’s really that simple.

Andy defended his actions saying, “We just felt that the show needed some new air. We needed to air it out and see where it went. These two women were so identifiable with it and will always be. I hope they will someday be back in some capacity.”

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See that doesn’t sound so bad. The door isn’t closed on the two because they ARE legends. However, if they keep making comments like this, feelings may begin to change. Nobody wants to deal with a disgruntled employee. Reality TV isn’t a given. To think it will always be there for you is naïve. If Vicki and Tamra didn’t plan better that’s on them.

There’s really no proof that Andy is an ageist. It’s just a matter of what is going to work best for the show moving forward. It’s not the conspiracy they’re trying to make it out to be. I’m glad Andy had the chance to defend himself and speak on it because it could be so damaging to his life.