The legal battle behind the scenes at Bravo is getting as heated as a “Real Housewives” reunion.
Andy Cohen is calling former “Real Housewives of New York City” star Leah McSweeney’s bombshell lawsuit against him a “shakedown,” and claims that McSweeney is trying to “force an unjustified settlement” with the Bravo host.
But McSweeney’s attorneys told that his response is just an attempt to “scare and intimidate” alleged victims like McSweeney into silence.
McSweeney’s suit, filed late last month, alleged that Cohen likes to snort cocaine with some of the “Housewives” stars, and that he’s part of a group of people who tried to exploit her substance issues and mental health struggles in a cynical attempt to drive up ratings.
But Cohen’s lawyer calls the cocaine allegations “categorically false,” and writes in a letter to McSweeney’s legal team seen by , “Mr. Cohen never used cocaine with any cast member on any ‘Real Housewives’ show or with any other Bravo employee.”
McSweeney’s lawsuit claims that Cohen, 55 — who is also executive producer of “RHONY” and its spinoff, “The Real Housewives Ultimate Girls Trip” — “engages in cocaine use with Housewives that he employs” and that “Cohen’s proclivity for cocaine usage with his employees is well-known throughout the ‘Real Housewives’ franchise.”
The reality star, 41, who is in recovery, made the allegations about Cohen and cocaine as part of her case alleging that the network is built on a culture that “thrives off drug and alcohol use,” and that Bravo preyed on her alcohol problem by either intentionally exacerbating it, or by preventing her from seeking help in a cynical attempt to boost its own viewership. She’s also suing Bravo, Shed Media — a production company that makes “RHONY” and “RHUGT” — and Warner Media, which owns Shed.
Cohen’s lawyer, Orin Snyder of…
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