Andy Cohen, Laverne Cox apologize to Amandla Stenberg for controversial segment

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On Sunday’s episode of Watch What Happens Live, Andy Cohen tried to wade into the Amandla Stenberg versus Kylie Jenner debate on cultural appropriation, but the backlash against him was so bad that the hashtag #BoycottBravo started trending.

He has since come forward to apologize.

During the segment, Cohen said of Stenberg’s criticism of Kylie Jenner, “Today’s Jackhole goes to the Instagram feud between Kylie Jenner and Hunger Games star/Jaden Smith’s prom date Amandla Stenberg, who criticized Kylie for her cornrows, calling it cultural appropriation.”

Cohen included his guests Laverne Cox and former Vogue Editor-at-Large André Leon Talley in the discussion, posing the question, “white girls in cornrows … is it OK or nay, Laverne and Andre?”

Talley: “To me, it’s fine.”

Cox: “Um…Bo Derek.”

After the swift and unforgiving backlash over his comments, Cohen stepped forward to try to explain himself, saying that he was trying to poke fun at online celebrity feuds and not the topic itself.

“To clarify, I gave the jackhole to an online feud & certainly not to the topic or to any individual. I ironically hate online feuds,” he tweeted out.

He further clarified that he “didn’t understand the larger context of this cultural discussion,” and that he “TRULY meant no disrespect to her or anyone else.”

Laverne Cox, who was also criticized for the segment because she didn’t stand up for Stenberg, also came forward to explain herself: “In that moment, I also felt that the topic of cultural appropriation needs way more than the 10 seconds or less I had to respond at the end of the show to fully unpack.”

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