Brandi Glanville has accused Bravo bigwig Andy Cohen of sexual harassment in an explosive new legal letter obtained by DailyMail.com that was sent by her attorneys to NBC, Shed Media and Warner Bros. on Thursday.
Glanville, 51, claims that an ‘obviously inebriated’ Cohen sent her a video of himself talking about wanting to have sex with another Bravo star and invited her to watch the act over FaceTime in 2022.
‘In a video sent by Mr. Cohen to Ms. Glanville in 2022, Mr. Cohen—appearing obviously inebriated—boasted of his intention to sleep with another Bravo star that night while thinking of her and invited her to watch via Facetime,’ her attorney Bryan Freedman writes.
The identity of the ‘Bravo star’ was not disclosed in the letter but Cohen later revealed it to be Below Deck alum Kate Chastain as he responded to Glanville’s accusations on X (formerly Twitter) Wednesday.
Cohen explained that he — an openly gay man — and Chastain were ‘joking’ about hooking up but acknowledged it was ‘inappropriate.’
‘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. That said, it was totally inappropriate and I apologize,’ the WWHL host wrote.
DailyMail.com has reached out to representatives for Cohen and Bravo for comment.
Brandi Glanville has accused Bravo bigwig Andy Cohen of sexual harassment in an explosive new legal letter obtained by DailyMail.com that was sent by her attorneys to N BC, Shed Media and Warner Bros. on Wednesday
In the legal letter, Freedman notes that Cohen was Glanville’s superior at the time the alleged video was sent as she was working on the second season of The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip, a Real Housewives spin-off for NBC’s streaming service Peacock.
She’d also worked closely with Cohen for over 10 years after landing a spot on the hit Bravo series Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills back in 2011.
‘Mr. Cohen was Ms. Glanville’s boss at the time and exercised complete and total control over her career. This was an extraordinary abuse of power that left Ms. Glanville feeling trapped and disgusted,’ he writes.
‘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.’
After 20 years of co-hosting, Lauer was abruptly fired from the Today show over allegations of sexual misconduct.
Although NBC denied rumors of a cover-up, journalist Ronan Farrow claimed in his bombshell book that the network took internal steps to protect Lauer.
Glanville’s allegations against Cohen were not even a fraction of the explosive claims made by her attorneys in the new legal letter obtained by DailyMail.com this week.
In it, Glanville’s attorney claimed she was ‘used and abused by NBC, Bravo, Warner Bros., and Shed Media’ and accused the network of ‘hiding evidence’ that would clear her name.
Glanville has decided to ‘wage a public reputational war’ against the network after they ‘silenced’ her in the wake of sexual assault allegations made against Glanville by her Ultimate Girls’ Trip costar Caroline Manzo.
The Real Housewives of New Jersey star, 62, made headlines in 2023 when she alleged that Glanville kissed her without consent and even ‘forced her vagina against her back’ during filming of the Housewives spin off show in Morocco.
Last month, Manzo officially filed to sue Bravo over her claim that production encouraged Glanville to sexually harass.
Now, in a new legal demand, Glanville’s attorney’s appear to suggest Manzo is lying, insisting no assault took place, as they demand the network release to them ‘all existing documents and data’ pertaining to the accusations.
Glanville, 51, claims that an ‘obviously inebriated’ Cohen sent her a video of himself talking about wanting to have sex with another Bravo star and invited her to watch the act over FaceTime in 2022; seen in 2023
The identity of the ‘Bravo star’ was not disclosed in the letter but Cohen later revealed it to be Below Deck alum Kate Chastain as he responded to Glanville’s accusations on X (formerly Twitter) Wednesday
Cohen explained that he — an openly gay man — and Chastain were ‘joking’ about hooking up but acknowledged it was ‘inappropriate’; Chastain seen on February 14
‘Ms. Glanville and Ms. Manzo engaged in ‘dirty dancing,’ flirting, and playful touching,’ the letter reads. ‘Throughout the night, they shared a couple of kisses.
‘We have heard about a supposed ‘bathroom incident’ through press leaks, but Shed Media has repeatedly refused to allow Ms. Glanville or her counsel to see the footage in question; there is no truth to any allegations of impropriety’.
The letter continued: ‘It is apparent some allegation was made; however, neither the nature nor the source of that allegation has been clarified by NBC, Shed Media, or Warner Bros.
‘We can glean from the press coverage—seeded by malicious and deliberate leaks—that Ms. Manzo formally accused Ms. Glanville of sexual misconduct and that Ms. Glanville was sent home as a result.’
They continued: ‘It bears emphasis that Ms. Glanville and Ms. Manzo were never alone together; anything that happened took place in the presence of the cast and crew. All the events were captured on camera or picked up via microphone.’
Glanville’s legal team maintain her innocence and insist that the TV star was never alone with Manzo, and that her costar ‘did not manifest a lack of consent at any point.’
The letter also sees Glanville’s reps accuse Manzo of ‘feeding a defamatory narrative’ to the media and of being the source behind the press leaks regarding the claims.
The letter states: ‘We have every reason to believe that Ms. Manzo, with the tacit or express support of Bravo and Shed Media, is the source of the early and voluminous press leaks that began immediately upon Ms. Glanville’s return home.
‘Yet Ms. Glanville was admonished to remain entirely silent and to refrain from defending herself. She was further told that assuming her compliance with that directive, she would have the opportunity to work for Shed Media/Warner Bros. again on the condition that she completes 6-months of outpatient therapy with a Warner Bros.-affiliated therapist. Ms. Glanville did so.
Freedman notes that Cohen was Glanville’s superior at the time the alleged video was sent as she was working on the second season of The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip, a Real Housewives spin-off for NBC’s streaming service Peacock
Brandi Glanville’s attorney claims that the TV star has been ‘used and abused by Bravo’ and they are accusing the network of ‘hiding evidence’ that would clear her name in a new legal letter. Real Housewives of New Jersey star Caroline Manzo (right), 62, is suing Bravo and claims production encouraged Glanville to sexually harass her during filming the Housewives spinoff Ultimate Girls Trip
‘It became apparent afterward, however, that this was a false promise intended to ensure Ms. Glanville’s silence.’
It continues: ‘All the while, Ms. Manzo, Bravo, and Shed Media were feeding a defamatory narrative that destroyed Ms. Glanville’s reputation, employment prospects, mental health, and financial stability and caused untold harm to Ms. Glanville and her family.’
In a statement shared with DailyMail.com, attorney Bryan Freedman called for other ‘victims’ of Bravo and NBC to reach out to their team and join the ‘fight’ against the network.
He wrote: ‘This is yet another example of the abusive practices of the reality TV industry. Mark Geragos and I have heard from thousands of current and former cast members on reality shows about the physical and emotional harm inflicted on them by virtue of their participation. NBC, Bravo, Warner Bros., and Shed Media intentionally obscure their legal rights, bind them to illegal contracts, and knowingly cause them to suffer in silence.
‘We know there are untold numbers of innocent victims who have yet to tell their stories or seek legal redress. We encourage all of them to contact us and join our growing team as we fight for change in this sordid industry.’
The letter highlighted how Glanville has been plagued with health issues ever since Manzo’s allegations went public, and said she has been in ‘dire straits’ after Bravo tried to ‘humiliate and ruin her publicly.’
The reality star has talked openly about how her face was left disfigured due to stress-induced angioedema – a condition which causes swelling under the skin
Glanville’s team accuses the network of having a ‘reckless disregard for the mental and emotional health’ of employees – adding that Glanville has been treated like a ‘sacrificial lamb’ and has faced ‘social and economic death.’
They are seeking evidence from the network’s servers, storage, personal computers, portable systems.
The legal letter warns that ‘Ms. Glanville is uniquely positioned to reveal more revelations’ and is just one of thousands of stars to come forward against the network in recent years.
TMZ previously reported that Manzo is suing Bravo and claimed production plied them with alcohol as they filmed the spin-off in Morocco in January 2023.
According to court documents obtained by Page Six, Manzo claims Glanville ‘forced her vagina against her back’ and ‘proceeded to mount Manzo on the couch holding Manzo down with her body, forcibly squeezed Manzo’s cheeks together and thrust her tongue in Manzo’s mouth, while humping her.’
The documents state: ‘Defendants, including Bravo, regularly ply the Real Housewives cast with alcohol, cause them to become severely intoxicated, and then direct, encourage and/or allow them to sexually harass other cast members because that is good for ratings.’
Glanville previously revealed that her face was left disfigured due to stress-induced angioedema – a condition which causes swelling under the skin
The star, pictured left in 2017, has been working with a plastic surgeon to conquer her condition – pictured right in 2024
‘Caroline Manzo is a victim of those harmful actions,’ it added.
In her full statement in response to the suit at the time, a representative for Glanville told DailyMail.com: ‘Sadly, Brandi had to wake up to yet another lawsuit that includes defamatory, false accusations about her. While filming, Brandi followed what the producers asked of her, and there was no sexual assault.
‘She is innocent of these absurd accusations that have weighed on her mental and physical health for far too long without word of support from Peacock, Shed or Bravo.’
The statement concluded: ‘This painful storytelling seems endless and needs to stop. She is looking to move on and upward and get her life back.’
This isn’t the first lawsuit filed against the network over the Housewives franchise.
Last year butler Marco Vega – who worked and appeared on season two of Real Housewives: Ultimate Girls Trip – filed a lawsuit for sexual assault and harassment.
In his lawsuit, Vega said he was ‘sexually harassed and abused’ while shooting the show at Dorinda Medley’s Blue Stone Manor claiming he was slapped on the buttocks by Phaedra Parks and that he was ‘forcibly stripped’ by Glanville, who ripped his shirt off.
In her lawsuit, Manzo alleged that the former Real Housewives of Beverly Hills alum kissed her without consent and even ‘forced her vagina against her back’
Glanville insists she is innocent and ‘vehemently denies any wrongdoing’ – pictured in 2009
Leah McSweeney filed a discrimination complaint with Bravo last year, alleging she was forced to miss her grandmother’s funeral due to filming commitments.
A lawsuit filed by McSweeney is said to be imminent, Page Six reported at the time.
Back in August, a bombshell letter revealed that 80 reality stars had teamed up to accuse the network of ‘covering up sexual violence, condoning revenge porn, exploiting minors and denying mental health treatment’.
Bethenny Frankel was believed to have led the charge, though the former RHONY star has since clarified that she is not one of the people who is officially taking legal action against Bravo or NBC.