Andy Cohen isn’t the first person you’d think to ask about Elon Musk’s Twitter takeover. Then again, the real-time drama of an egotistical billionaire starting social media feuds and making impulsive decisions very publicly sounds like fodder for a Real Housewives plot line.
It’s no secret that Cohen loves to stir the pot. He may be host of Watch What Happens Live! on Bravo and executive producer of the Real Housewives franchise, among other successful shows, but he’s also an extremely online person with a coveted blue checkmark. That VIP status means Cohen is one of the many who would be impacted by Musk’s dizzying changes to verification and subscriptions on Twitter. And lest you forget, Cohen also has his stable of crown jewel Bravolebrities who depend on the platform for continued influence.
In a way, he’s the perfect person to answer our burning questions about the recent Twitter drama and its impact on OG blue checks and those would pay to play. On Wednesday, at a travel trends event hosted by Expedia, I stole a few minutes of Cohen’s time to get his take on all things Twitter and even his Wordle score.
Credit: Expedia Group
Cecily Mauran: Alright, first up, we’ve got to talk about Twitter.
Andy Cohen: Okay.
Would you pay for verification?
No!
Care to expand on that?
Basically, I’m waiting to see how it all plays out. If it becomes a huge problem for me… I don’t really know.
By the way, when [Musk] announced it, I didn’t think it was the worst idea. I’m like, okay, well, guess what? These guys are trying to make money. This is something that seems to be important to people. So, okay, they’re trying to make money. I mean, it’s a free country. You can just choose to pay or not.
But look, then people started impersonating other people. Then you kind of see why it’s important to be verified. So I am just waiting to see. When they first announced [it], I said, “No, I won’t pay.” The second day I was like, “Oh okay, I got this. Maybe I’ll pay and write it off if it seems important.”
I’m kind of waiting to see how it plays out.
Yeah, good move.
But Twitter was a cesspool before he bought it. It remains a cesspool. It is a cesspool! And we’re all in it, and he didn’t make it a cesspool. But you know, here we are.
I think that’s the point that’s sort of missing from all of this.
Yeah, Twitter was not a great place three weeks ago. It was nasty.
Has anyone tried to impersonate you on Twitter?
Not yet, no.
Can you think of somewhere you would rather spend your $8 a month?
Well, I mean, sure, you know, giving it to the homeless?
If Twitter gets toxically worse than it already is, what are some other promotional pathways for Bravolebrities?
I think Instagram is great. TikTok‘s great. You know, Twitter is not the only game in town. Twitter seems to be the place where people get in the most trouble. So it may not be the worst idea for everybody to get off.
If you were to leave Twitter, where would you go?
Well, that’s a really good question. Maybe nowhere. I’ve heard about… what’s it called? Mastodon? I don’t know.
Would you have Elon on Watch What Happens Live!?
Sure. He’s the richest man in the world.
What would you want to ask Elon about?
There’s so much to ask him. I would start by asking him about all the questions he’s already getting about Twitter and firing people, and if he’s going to allow Donald Trump on. I mean, there’s a cavalcade of Twitter stuff that could be the whole first act of the show.
Ok, final question: What’s your Wordle streak?
Right now? It’s not great. I got my Wordle in one [try] today. I was very excited! I was eating baked goods and I wrote “baker,” and it was “baker” today. So that was very exciting.
This interview has been edited and condensed.
