Andy Cohen Addresses Rumor That RHONJ Star Is Joining New ‘Housewives’ Show

Andy Cohen addressed a major rumor about the newest “Real Housewives” franchise. A few weeks after Bravo announced the launch of “The Real Housewives of Rhode Island,” the executive producer seemingly reacted to a rumor that a veteran star from the New Jersey cast is making a move to Rhode Island.

In an interview with People magazine, Cohen said of the casting rumor, “I think that’s been a little overstated.”

The executive producer did not come out and say that a familiar face won’t make a cameo on the new series, though. He added, “It’s really about who’s in Rhode Island.”

There Have Been Rumors That Dolores Catania is Joining RHORI

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Cohen didn’t drop any names, but his remarks come amid rampant rumors that “Real Housewives of New Jersey” veteran Dolores Catania is making a temporary move to Rhode Island. An insider alleged to Ok magazine that Catania would “rent a summer house there and be a friend of the Housewives.”

Catania is reportedly friends with one of the main women on the new show, the source claimed. “She could inevitably become a full-time cast member and move to Rhode Island if she takes off on that show,” the insider added.

Andy Cohen Compared the RHORI Cast to Early RHONJ

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The RHORI cast has not been announced by Bravo, but one thing that Cohen has confirmed to People magazine is that the cast will be “Italian with a capital I” and that the show will give “early Jersey vibes.”

Speaking with Page Six in a May 9 interview, Cohen described the “incredible” new cast. The Bravo host teased that the new women are “more Italian” with “deep families” than other “Real Housewives” franchises. “[It] does kind of remind you of early ‘Jersey’ in a weird way,” he said.

“They are very Italian,” Cohen added. “Rhode Island is such a small state, and they all kind of know each other and overlap, and it’s an incredible group of women who have really interesting connections. I think it’s going to really surprise people.”

A press release posted by Bravo teased that “The Real Housewives of Rhode Island will expand into “the world of a tight-knit circle of Rhode Islanders who have deep community roots and families that go back generations. “

“With aspirational lives, thriving businesses, and tangled family dynamics, these decade-long friendships prove that in a state this small, there’s no escaping your past… or each other,” the teaser read.