Howie Mandel Says He Has “Nothing Against” The Bravo Fans That Were “Rough” On Him After His Tom Sandoval Interview: “I Gave Him A Platform To Speak”

April 11, 2023 is a day that will live in infamy for Bravo fans everywhere. It is the day Howie Mandel gave disgraced Vanderpump Rules star Tom Sandoval the chance to tell his side of the story on his podcast, Howie Mandel Does Stuff. Before that fateful day, Sandoval hadn’t spoken publicly about “Scandoval” the name given to his betrayal of his girlfriend of nine years, Ariana Madix. Madix had discovered his ongoing affair with their close friend, Rachel “Raquel” Leviss, after one cataclysmic scroll through his photos.

A Vanderpump Rules novice at that point, Mandel had his daughter and co-host, Jackelyn Shultz, by his side to help guide him through what turned out to be one of the most infamous interviews of his career. Through an apt Friends analogy, Shultz conveyed to her father the earth-shattering impact of Sandoval’s and Leviss’ actions on their friend group: “It’s as if Chandler cheated on Monica with Rachel and Joey [who would be Sandoval’s BFF, Tom Schwartz] may have known but didn’t say anything.”

Even after that comparison, Mandel couldn’t fully comprehend the impact of Sandoval’s wrongdoings (because hey, he’s not the first man who’s ever cheated) and didn’t challenge him at all during their hour+ conversation. Bravo fans were enraged by Sandoval’s unwillingness to take accountability for his actions and by his lame justifications for his affair. However, audiences did agree the episode had one saving grace. Mandel did get to shave off Sandoval’s much talked about mustache at the end of their chat.

When Mandel came to the Page Six studio to discuss the upcoming season of America’s Got Talent and the success of NBC’s smash hit, Deal Or No Deal Island, we just had to ask Mandel about the backlash he faced after his landmark interview. “[It] blew up on me,” recalled Mandel. “Bravo people were really rough on me.” Though, Mandel insists there is no ill will. “I have nothing against [Bravo fans], but [they] have something against me because I gave [Sandoval] a platform,” said Mandel.

The toughest critic Mandel faced from his conversation with Sandoval? Shultz herself, a self-proclaimed member of Team Ariana. “Nobody was angrier at me than my daughter,” Mandel admitted. “She wanted to scream at Tom.” Mandel revealed to us that Shultz was wearing a “Send It To Darrell” hoodie referring to a line spoken by Sandoval’s co-star Lala Kent in a viral Instagram video responding to a cease and desist letter from Leviss that went directly to Lala instead of to her lawyer, Darrell Miller. “I made her take off right before he came in,” remembered Mandel.

Kent was highly critical of Mandel and his interview with Sandoval, but invited Mandel on her own podcast, Give Them Lala, to speak his peace. “I was happy for any opportunity to tell people how I really feel,” said Mandel. He wanted to make sure Bravo fans knew he didn’t “condone cheating.” At that point, Mandel thought Scandoval was “almost bigger than Clinton scandal in the White House.” “I didn’t understand how it rose to that,” admitted Mandel. “That was my misunderstanding.” Though grateful that Kent allowed him a safe space to address his Bravo critics, Mandel is still a little salty that she bailed on doing his podcast. “She ghosted me,” Mandel explained. “She said she was going to do mine [and] she’s never called back.”

When asked why Kent has ghosted him and his successful podcast, Mandel gave us his theory. “[She] knocked my show for the lighting after she saw the Sandoval show,” said Mandel. While Mandel confessed that he doesn’t know anything about lighting, he did offer her the chance to “come on and just relight.” Instead, she’s left him on hanging without a word. “I wish she just would’ve said no,” said Mandel. Given the backlash Kent has faced for the way she’s treated Madix this season, Mandel knows she could probably have used his platform to address her own haters. “Who gets the last laugh?” asked Mandel with a twinkle in his eye.

You know that old saying “If you can’t beat ’em, join ’em?” Mandel is now an avid Bravo fan and Vanderpump Rules enthusiast. “I watch everything. I like to stay up on what is happening in the world,” said Mandel. “I don’t know if Vanderpump is really the world, [but it is] to some.” He also watches The Valley and “everything Housewives.” When asked what his favorite franchise was, he was quick to call out The Real Housewives Of Salt Lake City. Like all other Bravoholics, he was hooked on the reveal that housewife Monica Garcia was behind Reality Von Tease, the Instagram handle that had been used to bully her co-stars for years. “When that came out at that table, that was a neat moment,” said Mandel. “I like the drama.”

A year later, the Howie Mandel Does Stuff podcast is still going strong. And the best part? Mandel still gets to work with his daughter, Shultz. In addition to Shultz being a “Bravo person” who “watches every show,” Mandel noted that “she’s up on pop culture” in general and is “incredibly smart.” He also loves how she has “no qualms about putting me in my place in front of the audience.” Bravo fans should trust and believe that if and when the next Bravo scandal hits, the newly indoctrinated Mandel will be on the forefront of the discussion.