Why Andy Cohen Thinks It’s A ‘Good Idea’ For Vanderpump Rules to Take a Break

During an episode of SiriusXM’s Andy Cohen Live, host Cohen addressed the decision to pause production for Season 12, following the eruption of drama post-Scandoval.

“Well, I saw that [the postponement]. As y’all know, I don’t produce Vanderpump Rules,” Cohen said to his co-host John Hill.

“We used to do this all the time with the Housewives. We would say, ‘You know what? Let’s put cameras down for, you know, four or five months and come back to them,’ and they will have lived, you know, life,” Cohen continued, referring to the Real Housewives franchise, which he produces.

“Things will be different. I think that, you know, I was talking to Ariana about this on the after show last night. I was saying, people do forget, especially as it relates to Ariana, who was the one cheated on. People forget that we picked up cameras a few, three months after she found out about that affair, so that’s why she’s still in the violently angry stage and you can understand that, so I always think it’s great,” Cohen said.

Ariana Madix struggled with whether or not to return to the show so shortly after her now-ex Tom Sandoval blew up everything by cheating on her with former costar Rachel Leviss.

Cohen emphasized that it would be best for the cameras to step away for a little while between seasons this time, to allow for Madix and other parties to process everything.

“Look, sometimes you want to pick cameras right up quickly because there’s stuff happening and you want to get in there right away and sometimes you do want people to live their lives and see how things develop and you know, so, I think it’s a very good idea,” Cohen concluded.

News of the hiatus comes as Season 11 is wrapping up; new episodes air Tuesday on Bravo.