If you’ve been wondering why Madonna has never graced the velvet chairs of Andy Cohen‘s late-night talk show, the Bravo host finally has some answers. After years of public pleading and private conversations, Andy Cohen has opened up about his complicated relationship with the Queen of Pop and why she continues to avoid Watch What Happens Live.
Speaking on the How to Fail with Elizabeth Day podcast, Cohen revealed that the pop icon once branded him a “troublemaking queen” after he laughed along to Patti LuPone‘s scathing remarks about her during a 2017 episode.
“Hopefully at some point before we wrap it up, she will do it,” Cohen began, before explaining how the tension first started.
Previously, on The Howard Stern Show in 2023, Cohen admitted he’s basically given up on the dream. “I hope she does, but I’m actually kind of over it,” Cohen confessed. He revealed that he’d been keeping a long list of interview questions in his Notes app just in case Madonna ever said yes, but added that “she’s kind of answered a lot of it. I’ve mellowed about it.”
The tension between the two goes deeper than just a declined invitation. Cohen shared that Madonna once texted him directly with a stern message: “Stop having people trash me on your show.” The issue appears to stem from guests on Watch What Happens Live making disparaging comments about the pop icon.
Cohen insists he’s always been one of Madonna’s biggest cheerleaders. “I speak so positively, on the radio and Watch What Happens Live. I am such a fan of yours, but only the bad stuff gets picked up in the press,” he told Madonna. He even joked that he could create a four-hour compilation of himself praising her.
The drama reached peak entertainment in December 2023 when Madonna spotted Andy Cohen in the front row at her Celebration Tour stop at Brooklyn’s Barclays Center. Mid-performance, she walked to the edge of the stage and warned him: “If you say one more bad thing about me on your show… you’re gonna get in so much trouble!” She then playfully sprayed liquid in his direction while calling him “You little troublemaking queen.”
Cohen took the public call-out in stride. “I’m a life-long Madonna fan, so it’s a thrill and an honor to be called a ‘troublemaking queen’ by the Queen of Troublemaking. I BOW!” he posted on Instagram afterward.
Despite the ongoing saga, it seems Madonna’s appearance on Watch What Happens Live remains unlikely. The relationship remains cordial but complicated, with Cohen accepting that this particular dream guest might never materialize.