‘Million Dollar Listing New York’: Fredrik Eklund On What It’s Like To Have Andy Cohen As A Client

By Lea Palmieri @littleleap
Published July 30, 2019, 8:30 a.m. ET

Where to Stream:

Million Dollar Listing New York

Powered by Reelgood

More On:

Bravo Now

“I haven’t felt this kind of excitement for ten years,” Fredrik Eklund said in regards to the eighth season of Million Dollar Listing New York, premiering Thursday, August 1 at 9pm ET/PT on Bravo. When we spoke over the phone earlier this month, the real estate mogul revealed he had yet to see this season’s first episode — in fact, he hadn’t even seen the trailer yet.

“People are texting me saying it looks really exciting,” he said, speculating that it could be “because Luis is back or because we have kids now or because the market has been more difficult.” And he’s excused for not watching yet because Eklund was in the process of moving his family, husband Derek and one-year-old twins, Fredrik Jr. and Mila, across the country to Los Angeles. His family will be based on the west coast, as he remains bicoastal and busy as ever, as we’ll see on this season of the show. “It’s not easy and you’ll see that,” he said of the big life change. “Moving can be very stressful, especially if you have toddlers, and I think that’s relatable, I hope so,” Eklund said.

In fact, it’s those relatable moments that have kept viewers coming back to Million Dollar Listing New York for eight seasons at this point. The multimillion-dollar deals, the six-figure commissions, the A-list clients? Maybe not so relatable. But the hustle, the highs and lows, and most of all, the friendships are what keep this show so appealing.

This season sees the return of Luis D. Ortiz, the bubbly broker who’s been traveling the world and absent from the show for two years, and yet his return feels both triumphant, heart-warming, and just plain fun. “I think he would agree that I’ve been very instrumental in getting him back to New York in general,” Eklund said of his pal. “That was a hard time for him to travel although it was important that he did that to search to find himself. There was a lot of darkness there and he’ll share that on the show this season. He is one of the most beautiful hearts and kindest souls I’ve encountered. I love him dearly and for me, it’s super important that he’s back just to have him in my life and to watch him again. He belongs in New York and in real estate and on TV, so I’m really happy.”

Eklund is also quite pleased with one of the confessional looks he went with for this season, a red leopard print blazer that is sure to catch your eye from its first appearance. “Doesn’t it look good?” he asked. “This season I’m going to be very extra in general as you will see, and I’m gonna wear crazy stuff and I’m just gonna be me.” Eklund arrived for his first interview of the season in that look, and after producers reminded him he’ll be wearing it all season long, they snapped a picture and send it over to Bravo executives to make sure it was approved. “I think everybody loved it,” Eklund said. “No one’s gonna flip the channel once they see me with that jacket on, they’re gonna be like, okay!”

Though not every boss has always loved what Eklund’s shown them. In his 2016 book, Superficial: More Adventures From the Andy Cohen Diaries, Andy Cohen writes about Eklund showing him apartments in 2015 when he had to move out of his own West Village home during its major renovation (Cohen bought the apartment next door to his own for a massive expansion). While Eklund counts Cohen as a friend, he admitted, “I wanted to make a good impression and I was honored that he picked me,” when it came to showing the Watch What Happens Live host options for his temporary home where he would only live for about a year. Ultimately, Cohen didn’t find the right space with Eklund, eventually landing a rental with his dream outdoor terrace space, and Eklund was just happy that the “big beautiful apartment” Cohen always desired would be waiting for him after the renovation.

When asked what the biggest real estate trend is for fellow New Yorkers these days, Eklund said plain and simple: wellness. “It started years ago with beautiful pools and gyms and personal training and it’s gone much further than that,” he said. “It could be private chefs, it could be multiple kinds of yoga,” he continued, emphasizing that “health-conscious living” is all over town these days.

And really, so is the consistently-busy Eklund. The brief glimpse that Million Dollar Listing New York gives us at his home life is so sweet, I couldn’t help but ask Eklund if he would ever want to do a spinoff featuring his family. He seemed surprised by the question, and after a pause, answered, “Oh. Um, no. I’ve never really thought of it.” He points to the time he was filming both Million Dollar Listing New York and Bethenny & Fredrik, which is a lot to handle on its own — but also happened to be occurring at the same time his twins were born. “I’m just so thankful for Million Dollar Listing New York and I’m really thankful to the other cast members because we have such a good thing going. I don’t need more air time, I don’t need to be more of a celebrity. I’m just thankful I’m able to integrate all parts of me into this TV show.”

For now, he’s enjoying being the “big brother” to the other guys on the show, explaining, “I try to help them out over the years, especially this year, and give them advice,” pointing out that he was the first to experience mant of life’s big moments, including having twins (fellow brokers Ryan Serhant and Steve Gold both welcomed daughters earlier this year). “I’m trying to tell them what they can learn from what I’ve experienced.”

And a sweet treat all viewers will get to experience is Eklund’s classic cake-throwing shenanigans, which he says on the show is totally accepted in his home country of Sweden. “I always make a joke, I’m like, I can get away with a lot of shit, I can say it’s a tradition in Sweden,” Eklund laughed. “I can’t guarantee nor confirm that if you throw cake in Sweden they will not be angry.”

Million Dollar Listing New York airs Thursday, Aug 1 at 9pm ET/PT on Bravo.

Where to stream Million Dollar Listing New York