Roxanne 
Bravo’s reality empire is expanding once again—this time to the smallest state in the U.S., but with some seriously big personalities. Andy Cohen is already hyping The Real Housewives of Rhode Island as a standout addition to the franchise, promising fans a fresh twist on familiar drama.
“The cast is incredible,” Cohen told Page Six exclusively at a Cinema Society screening of Lilly on Wednesday night. “They are very Italian. Rhode Island is such a small state, and they all kind of know each other and overlap, and it’s an incredible group of women who have really interesting connections. I think it’s going to really surprise people.”
Andy Cohen acknowledged the obvious comparisons to The Real Housewives of New Jersey, especially given the shared Italian-American roots and family dynamics. But he made sure to point out what sets the new show apart.
“Well, they’re in Rhode Island. It’s coastal,” he said, adding that the cast is even “more Italian” with “deep families.”
Still, the Bravo boss admitted that RHORI has the same kind of spark that first drew fans to RHONJ. “It does kind of remind you of early ‘Jersey’ in a weird way,” he said.
Of course, fans familiar with the franchise’s history couldn’t help but wonder if Bravo handled background checks more carefully this time—especially after RHONJ star Teresa Giudice and her then-husband Joe ended up behind bars.
“When we started ‘Jersey,’ nobody had [done] anything illegal,” Andy Cohen said. But he conceded that things are different now. “As the show has evolved,” he explained, “the diligence has evolved.”
The Real Housewives of Rhode Island will mark the 12th installment in Bravo’s long-running franchise, which began with The Real Housewives of Orange County in 2006.
Cohen was in attendance at Wednesday’s NeueHouse screening to support his longtime friend John Benjamin Hickey, who stars in Lilly alongside Patricia Clarkson. The star-studded event also brought out Hillary Clinton, Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick, Gayle King, Jim Parsons, John Slattery, Victor Garber, Cherry Jones, Tony Shalhoub, and Katie Couric.
18 comments
What a dink Andy is. He loves the Italian fambly angle and since he destroyed the RHONJ fambly he needs fresh paisanos. It just seems like an obvious poke at NJ to stir the pot from the little stinker.
And is RHONY really done? I've seen that out there but not from anyone reputable really…
happy mothers day to all!
Hi cam !!! I saw after Page six said canceled , Andrew said it’s not , so fake news .
Yes, and he still says Dallas isn't canceled as well.
LMAO
Happy Mom’s Day to all the moms.
Happy Momma day to all the moms today !!!
Andrew . WTH ? How you throwing jabs at the franchise that put you and your bank account on the map ? You helped add to this crazy and now you say this? Messy boots .
Meh . We’ll see . Sounds like you want more family chaos then what’s already been given which is sad . If you’re going new / then go hard or go home with something refreshing and how about no potential relationship divisions and some happy , fun? Unreal
Not good to make comparisons especially when this network contributed to a real downward spiral that effected real families .
Andy is so shady! You know he’s getting the Jersey broads all hot and bothered with that statement. What he REALLY means is, ‘Play ball, NJ bitches, and BEG for crumbs that fall from my table cuz with a wink of my wonky eye, ALL y’all heifers can and will be replaced….Capisce?’
Now watch them all fall in line for Daddy’s approval … ?
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My first thought was the close proximity between NJ to RI (less than two hundred miles) and how weird it was to have two franchises so close to each other, but then I considered how even closer NYC and NJ are to each other, as well as OC and BH. But the Italian connection is what's freaking everyone out, which BTW, was something he didn't need to bring up, unless he's sending the NJ ladies a message. Now I'm back to thinking NJ (as we know it) is over with, but something else is probably cooking for Teresa and the Gorgas.
Yep, no way to take the ‘Italian’ comment any other way than, ‘In your face, Jersey b*tches’. Fine by me. I think they should replace ATL with Nashville personally cuz…ATL is a MESS! ? And not in a good way either. I say stick a fork in NYC, NJ and ATL. Give us Boston, Nashville, Chicago, New Orleans or sumpin along those lines instead. The older ones are getting or have gotten STALE AF! We need a breath of fresh air!
OT: Was the upvote on the clown comment on the Siggy thread intentional?
I don’t know how one washes the Real Housewives taint off of them to attain to any genuine level of credibility, so yeah. Trump is known for picking some real effin’ DUDS. Omarosa anyone? ? I think he’d do well to stay FAR AWAY from reality tv appointees period. JMHO and ymmv but if he and Siggy prove me wrong, so be it. I’ve no investment in this but Siggy is gonna be scrutinized and criticized more than your relative unknowns. She sneezes in the wrong direction and it’s ‘See??? Trump appointed a REALITY STAR!!!’ But meh…oh well. ?
She’s not negotiating peace in the Gaza strip, she is one of the 55 members who was appointed by the President for The United States Holocaust Memorial Council. She will serve as the board of trustees for the museum and oversees its operations and policies. Translation: She will be going to dinners and attending funerals.
There’s GOTTA be an appointment for Vicki Gunvalson somewhere… cancer czar? Oops. Lol. Just funnin’ witcha…?
Thank you for the clarification.
Although I'm sure he's lost most control of it by now, this show didn't just fall out of Cohen's ass since the last season of NJ. It feels like a smarmy betrayal to a franchise that has brought Bravo many millions of dollars, and and speaking of "Italian", sounds like it might be time for the Jersey ladies to send AC a little message.
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Hopefully this means the end for the NJ franchise.
Andy is wrong when he said no one had done anything illegal when they started New Jersey.
Did he forget about Danielle?
And, the Giudices were doing illegal things prior to the start of NJ, as they were being investigated before they were even cast.