Bethenny Frankel is busy doing her thing, despite the omnipresent noise in theback.
The Real Housewives of New York alum and businesswoman has two new bigprojects, her ReWives podcast __ and __ CNBCs Money Court in addition toher usual repertoire, ranging from saving the world with disaster reliefinitiative BStrong to being a TikTok beauty influencer at 50-something.
“It’s really annoying people, which means I’m doing something right,” Frankelquips to Yahoo Entertainment of her new iHeart Radio podcast, which sees herrewatching episodes of the Bravo franchise with unexpected celebrity guests,ranging from Jerry Springer to Suze Orman.
Since it launched in early November, Frankel has faced criticism from somewithin the Bravo universe for starting a podcast about the franchise aftercalling her experience on the show, which she left for the second time in2019, “toxic.” On the day we spoke, reformer RHONY co-star Luann de Lessepshad slammed her, again.
“I mean I don’t really spend any time thinking about Luann,” Frankel says inresponse to being asked for her reaction to de Lesseps’s latest. “She spends alot of time thinking about me. So we can thank her for that, because it’scertainly helping [bring in listeners]. I mean, every little bit counts — evenif it’s just a little bit from her audience, it’s helpful. I appreciate allthe promotion. It’s definitely working.”
Frankel launched her new podcast ReWives with iHeart, which looks back atpast Real Housewives shows. iHeart is also home to her Just B podcast.(Photo: iHeart)
Of the criticism in general, which also came from her friend producer/reunionshow host, Andy Cohen, she says, “I’m completely integral to the success ofthe Housewives so I’m absolutely qualified to talk on its history,” havingfirst joined the franchise in 2008. Plus, she says the show has “changed intosomething different” in recent years, so “a lot of what we’re talking about iswhen it really was its absolute best.”
She says ReWives is “different than anything anyone else is doing.” Plus,”I’m not a disgruntled fired housewife, which most people who are doing showshave some sort of skewed perspective. I’m a person that left on my own” afterSeason 11. “So that definitely makes it a different perspective .”
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Frankel also indulged us by weighing in on Ramona Singer saying she won’t bedoing The Real Housewives of New York City Legacy spinoff. Rumors circulatedthe original housewife was fired, but Bravo has yet to announce the cast.
Asked if it was a loss for the franchise not to have Singer — or whether shebelieves she’s part of that toxic Housewives culture, Frankel replies, “Idon’t think it needs to be that deep. I think that Ramona always brought thedrama but didn’t kill the party. And the thing is — I don’t know who said it,but Ramona represents a certain woman in New York City.That’s true.Meaning: Wecan take all cigarette smoking and drinking out of movies but that’s notnecessarily reflecting reality.So if we’re telling a reality story, Ramona isa woman in New York City , and not every woman is politically correct. And notevery woman looks the same. So I think that sometimes reality television andeven scripted television makes the mistake of trying to manufacture whatculture wants right now, when in reality there are all kinds of people Thatshow, when I was on it, reflected different types of people and theirdifferent opinions and their inappropriate comments and the mistakes that theymade.So if you go too far away from that, then everything’s just a scripted,shiny show where you ‘re checking all the boxes you’ re supposed to check.”
Frankel definitely isn’t trying to check boxes when making career choices. Inaddition to her buzzy new podcast, she’s brings her business acumen to thetable for Money Court , which sees her and Shark Tank Kevin O’Learypresides over high-stakes financial disputes and render legally bindingdecisions to the parties.
“I left there saying to everyone that I work with: This is the best thing I’veever done,” she says of her first TV appearance since her 2021 HBO Max series_The Big Shot with Bethenny_ a competition reality show, that saw her searchfor Skinnygirl’s VP of operations.
Frankel discusses her new gigs, including flexing her entrepreneurial skillson CNBC’s Money Court opposite Kevin O’Leary. (Photo: Jeff Daly/CNBC)
“I walked in thinking we were doing a television show, and I walked out havingdone the most intense TV I’ve ever done,” she says, explaining that she andO’Leary, who she met on Shark Tank , were so invested in making the rightdecision. “We were both fried because the stakes were so high. It’s realpeople, real businesses… We took serious time and effort and brainpower andreally dug in.”
She said her fans have enjoyed seeing her in the elevated TV role, saying,”I’ve gotten so many social media messages from people saying, ‘I love theshow. Finally something I don’t feel guilty about watching.’ It’s not junkfood,” as Housewives drama can be.
When she’s not making TV shows and podcasts, Frankel has been sharing her hottakes on beauty products and revealing celebrity plastic surgery secrets,rendering her a whole new following as a TikTok influencer.
“It was accidental, unintentional,” the mom of one says of gaining fans forher blunt makeup and skin care reviews. “It’s hilarious to go into CVS andhave women say, ‘I’m here buying your [recommended] products and you’re doingGod’s work,’ and me laughing because they’re not talking about Bstrong” — hercharity that gives emergency assistance to people in crisis. “They’re talkingabout lip gloss! And younger girls stop me, in front of Starbucks, telling methat they’re big fans, because of my TikTok. They only know me from TikTok;they’ve never even heard of the Housewives. Their moms might watch the_Housewives_ but they don’t.”
Bethenny Frankel at the 2022 MTV Movie & TV Awards: UNSCRIPTED at BarkerHangar in Santa Monica, California and broadcast on June 5, 2022. (Photo: EmmaMcIntyre/Getty Images for MTV)
And Frankel won’t stop calling out the Kardashians in that space either —whether it’s for Kim’s Met Gala weight loss, Kylie’s cosmetic markups or thePhotoshopping.
“The thing is, they have lost a lot of their shine because people have beenwaterboarded with the message,” she says of the famous family. “When theyfirst came on the scene, one at a time, it was … a different type of bodyimage and celebrating curves and things like that. It was also watching shinyobjects and watching a display of wealth. But it’s gotten vulgar . It’s nothealthy for young women. It’s destructive. It’s desperate. It’s so: Look atme! Look at me!”
Frankel has put them on blast in videos and on her podcast. She’s publiclycalled for an “intermission” from their constant presence in the media, andimplored them to set better examples for young people than boasting aboutunhealthy weight loss and other negative messages.
“There’s definitely been a shift,” she says since her “very controversialvideo at the time. Back then, no one was really saying that. Now you see [thatpeople have] just sort of had it. But they are so powerful and have such shockvalue and fashion power that it’s hard to ignore.”
That said, “Everyone knows it’s not healthy for society. But they are takingevery penny that they can take. If you see money on the floor, you’re gonnapick it up. So they are in a smash and grab, take all the money.One day, themusic may stop [but] they’re billionaires so it’s hard to fight with multiplebillionaires. But I’m giving society credit for trying.”
As for her own career choices, and what people have to say about them, she’sjust going to stick to trusting her gut and tuning out the noise.
“I just do things that I like, so if the tables go cold, I’ll walk out,” shesays. “I’m cool with that. I didn’t plan to be a beauty influencer. I didn’tgo looking for this amazing business show. When great opportunities presentthemselves, I decide to take them or deny them. Everyone’s always trying tofigure out, like, ‘Ooh, what’s she doing next?’ ‘She’s trying to do this.”She’s trying to do that.’ I’m not really trying to do anything, I’m justdoing what I like to do. That’s pretty clear if you really think about it.”