Andy Cohen, the charismatic television host and producer, is gearing up to co-host CNN’s New Year’s Eve broadcast alongside Anderson Cooper. With the annual tradition known for its lively and entertaining atmosphere, Cohen hopes that this year, he and Cooper will be allowed to enjoy some drinks on air, in contrast to last year when alcohol consumption was significantly reduced.
During a conversation at BravoCon with E! News‘ Justin Sylvester, Cohen addressed the issue of alcohol on the broadcast, saying, “Hopefully, I will not be sneaking it. I haven’t heard anything yet, but come on, they need to let us drink. It’s New Year’s Eve. That didn’t go well last year in terms of viewer happiness about us drinking. People really cared, and I hope CNN gives the people what they want.”
Cohen further advocated for some leniency, humorously stating, “Give the daddies some juice.”
In recent years, CNN’s New Year’s Eve broadcast has been known for its moments of merriment and occasional overindulgence. Last year, the program took a more sober approach in response to previous incidents.
The previous year, during the broadcast, Andy Cohen made headlines for comments made about Ryan Seacrest, who hosts Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve on ABC. After the band Journey performed on the ABC show, Cohen referred to them as “Ryan Seacrest’s group of losers that are performing behind us.”
Acknowledging the lapse in judgment, Andy later apologized, saying, “The only thing that I regret saying, the only thing is that I slammed the ABC broadcast, and I really like Ryan Seacrest, and he’s a great guy. And I really regret saying that, and I was just stupid and drunk and feeling it.”
In response to past incidents and viewer feedback, CNN made changes in the broadcast to reduce alcohol consumption on air.
Ryan Seacrest, who hosts the rival New Year’s Eve broadcast on ABC, commented on the shift in a December 2022 interview with Entertainment Weekly. He mentioned that he doesn’t “advocate drinking when one is on the air” and added that he believes “it’s probably a good idea” for CNN to scale back the drinking during the broadcast. However, he acknowledged that viewers might have a different perspective, saying, “But I think they had something to say about my show at one point, which was I’m sure from the alcohol because I don’t think they would say what they said about our performers if they weren’t drinking.”
As the New Year’s Eve broadcast approaches, fans eagerly anticipate whether Andy Cohen and Anderson Cooper will get their wish and add some celebratory spirit to their already entertaining and insightful coverage of the annual event.