Andy Cohen's Role at Bravo Has Evolved Over the Years

A Real Housewives reunion isn’t complete without Andy Cohen sitting at the center of each show's fights, controversies, and revelations. Andy has been with the franchise for over a decade and spawned a global phenomenon in 2006 with The Real Housewives of Orange County.

Throughout his time with the Housewives, Andy became involved in several feuds — and now lawsuits — with current and former cast members. In 2024, Caroline Manzo and Leah McSweeney filed claims against Andy and Bravo on harassment charges and allegations regarding alcohol and substance abuse. In 2022, NeNe Leakes also accused Andy of fostering a "toxic workplace" and accused him of encouraging racism on The Real Housewives of Atlanta set.

In April 2024, Andy addressed the lawsuits and ongoing Housewives drama for the first time. He shared his take on his future at the network he helped build into the conglomerate it is today. So, what is Andy actually responsible for at Bravo? We have his official role below!

Although his name is now synonymous with the Real Housewives, Andy’s time with Bravo began before the franchise did. The Boston University graduate booked a job as Bravo’s Vice President of Original Programming after several other positions at the network. Two years later, he developed RHOC and served as an executive producer. After RHOC, Andy launched over ten more shows across the U.S. and overseas.

As an EP, Andy gets to see each episode of every show before it airs on TV. Then, he makes “producer” notes that can range from a cast member retelling their story in a confessional to adding new music to a scene.

Andy is also responsible for who stays or leaves the show and insists he works with a team of producers who help him make the final decisions. Nonetheless, social media commenters tag him in any Real Housewives drama, and he’s used to it by now.

“I get blamed for a lot,” Andy admitted to Kandi Burruss on her YouTube show, Speak on It, in 2019. “And I will say I try to be an advocate for everyone to point.”

Andy’s current net worth might make the flack he receives from Real Housewives fans a little more manageable. The Bravo exec earns $50 million, most of which he accumulated through his reality shows. In 2009, though, Andy stepped in front of the camera to host his late-night show, Watch What Happens Live.

The series began as another opportunity for the Housewives to dish on their latest drama but soon moved to a weekly show. During his time on WWHL, Andy navigated his dual role as Bravo’s talent and executive producer. In 2013, he opted to leave his job to focus on WWHL full-time.

“It was impossible for me to be in charge of all programming at Bravo and host this show every night,” he told Kandi about the decision.

Although Andy is able to live his dream of being a TV while also being forever tied to the Housewives empire, he told The Hollywood Reporter in April 2024 that there could be a time we see a reunion without his insane facial reactions at the center of the drama. He shared with the outlet that, while he has no plans to stay on Bravo's payroll for a while "because I like it there," the forward-thinker said the network ultimately has the final say.

"You’ll have to ask Bravo about the first part," Andy said of a possible departure. "Hopefully they’ll keep employing me for a while because I like it there. But you know, everyone is ultimately replaceable. I love doing the shows, but if it all went away tomorrow for some reason, I’ll be fine. I can write books, I have a successful radio career at Sirius. There are lots of things that I can do. And now that I have a family, I know now that I’ll never be alone."

Andy also stressed that many of the decisions Bravo makes — from making their shows "more representative" among demographics to the decision to delay BravoCon for a year in April 2024 — have nothing to do with him. However, in many fans' eyes, Andy is Bravo and Bravo is Andy (the man's Instagram handle even says so).

Stream each Real Housewives series on Peacock.