Judge in Andy Cohen, Leah McSweeney Case Admits in Unexpected Trial Moment That He's Never 'Watched Real Housewives'

Mar. 15, 2025

Andy Cohen and Leah McSweeney.Photo:Charles Sykes/Bravo/Getty; John Nacion/WireImage

Charles Sykes/Bravo/Getty; John Nacion/WireImage

Leah McSweeney’s claims againstAndy Cohenare being heard in court — and the judge has weighed in in an unexpected way.

The formerReal Housewives of New York Citystar appeared in court on Thursday, Nov. 14 afterfiling a lawsuitagainst Cohen, Bravo Media, NBC Universal Media, Warner Bros. Discovery, production company Shed Media US and producers John Paparazzo, Lisa Shannon and Darren Ward in February. She claimed she was a victim of discrimination and pressured to drink alcohol despite her sobriety.

“I am the one person in this courtroom that has not watchedReal Housewives," Judge Lewis Liman stated during the hearing, which prompted McSweeney’s attorney to reply, “You’re gonna see a lot more of this show than you want.”

Her legal team also argued “other Housewives are being intimidated” and men were treated better than women involved in the show.

Leah McSweeney (left) and Andy Cohen.Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty

Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty

The lawyer then claimed McSweeney was withheld from attending alcoholics anonymous meetings during the cast trip to Thailand and later fired from the show for speaking up. They also referenced an alleged text from Cohen saying, “Nice boob job, you’re a real Housewife now,” to which McSweeney had replied, “Can’t wait till they see me naked.”In their rebuttal, NBC’s lawyer argued, “The plaintiff does not get to second-guess or nitpick the creative process,” warning that cases like this could stifle entertainment: “Imagine white people suingHamilton—it would kill shows likeThe Sopranos.”

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In May, Cohenslammed McSweeney’s filing, stating that McSweeney’s allegations are “threadbare” and should be “dismissed as a matter of law.”

Cohen’s file to dismiss the case also said that the reality star’s discrimination claims “impermissibly seek to abridge Defendants’ First Amendment rights to tailor and adjust the messages they wish to convey in their creative works, including through cast selection and other creative decisions.”

Andy Cohen (left) on ‘Watch What Happens Live’ with Leah McSweeney (far right).Charles Sykes/Bravo/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty

The Housewives aficionado further claimed that both “parties and non-parties would be required to devote substantial time and resources to discovery, despite the likelihood that Plaintiff’s claims would be dismissed.”

Cohen’srequest for dismissal was deniedin September. The judge upheld that ruling once again during the Nov. 14 hearing.

Moreover, McSweeney claimed to have told production she had broken her nine years of sobriety but was sober again when filming for season 12 of the show began in 2019.

The filing alleged they were “intentionally planning scenarios intended to exacerbate [her] disabilities,” all in efforts to “create morbidly salacious reality television.”

Andy Cohen and Leah McSweeney.Charles Sykes/Bravo via Getty (2)

Charles Sykes/Bravo via Getty (2)

In a later section of the complaint, McSweeney also claimed that Cohen “engages in cocaine use with Housewives and other ‘Bravolebrities’ that he employs,” and has a “proclivity for cocaine usage with his employees.”

“Cohen tends to provide the Housewives with whom he uses cocaine with more favorable treatment and edits,” she claimed. “Cohen intentionally uses cocaine with his employees to further promote a workplace culture that thrives off drug and alcohol abuse, which leads to a failure to accommodate employees who are disabled and attempting to remain substance free.”

She also alleged that “Cohen’s preferred workplace environment, which is fueled with substances and illicit behavior, permeates every aspect of Defendant Bravo productions.”

source: people.com