Kyle Cooke says he had “nothing to do” with Hannah Berner’s firing from “Summer House,” but he’s “flattered” she thinks he has “that kind of pull.”
In an exclusive interview with Pvnew, Cooke — who owns and operates beverage company Loverboy — fires back at his former co-star for claiming she got canned from the Bravo reality series in 2021 because she did an ad for Loverboy competitor Truly Hard Seltzer.
“I have nothing to do with casting,” Cooke, 41, tells us, calling it “upsetting” that “this is the narrative being shared because there’s no truth to it.”
“I’m flattered anyone thinks I could have that kind of pull,” he adds, “but clearly, I don’t have any control over what Bravo does.”
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Berner, 32, made the allegation last week while appearing on Dave Portnoy’s “BFFs” podcast, during which she said she “didn’t know [she] wasn’t allowed to drink other drinks.”
Cooke, who’s married to Berner’s former best friend Amanda Batula, tells us “that’s a ridiculous statement and completely false.”
During Season 5 — her third and last on the show — Berner had a falling out with the couple, whose journey to launching Cooke’s line of hard seltzers, spiked teas and canned cocktails was documented throughout filming.
Reflecting on the timeline of events, Cooke says, “I believe her collaboration with Truly was a year after we filmed the Season 5 reunion, so the timing doesn’t add up.”
Though one of Berner’s Truly campaigns came out in April 2022, exactly one year after the reunion aired, she debuted her partnership with the brand in August 2019.
“We never spoke about it, but when I saw it, I thought that it made a lot of sense for them to tap into the Bravo fanbase,” Cooke admits.
“At that point in time, Loverboy was legitimately taking off, and I was too focused there to give it any more thought than that.”
During her chat with Portnoy, Berner said, “I think some of these shows become a lot of egos, and it’s like, ‘It’s my show. It’s my drink. You can’t do that.’ … It just becomes fighting over egos and screen time, and it’s not that fun after doing it for too many seasons.”
Cooke encourages fans to “go back and watch” Season 5, during which Berner feuded with several cast members, and “form their own opinion.”
“Personally, I think she was saying things on multiple podcasts leading up to the reunion that upset a lot of our group, and that’s what got in the way,” Cooke tells us, making sure to note that he “never voiced any issue with filming with her.”
According to Cooke, Berner “even reached out” to him after the contentious reunion, “basically apologizing.”
“I told her no apology to me was necessary but that Amanda deserved one,” he says, stressing that his “main concern” the entire time was his wife.
“My issues with Hannah had nothing to do with beverages or egos or screen time — they had to do with how she was treating Amanda,” he clarifies, emphasizing that he’s “only commenting on” Berner’s podcast appearance “because these lies are disparaging to [his] business.”
Cooke goes on to praise Berner for her “remarkable” comedy and podcast careers, saying he “plan[s] on watching her [new Netflix] special and encourage[s] everyone to tune in.”
“I’ve said on multiple occasions that I would love to put this behind us,” he says of their beef, adding that he “sent Hannah a congratulatory text about a year ago when [he] saw her name on a list of ‘top 10 comedians to watch’ to try and break the silence.”
Cooke concludes, “I hate having lingering issues with anyone in my life, and I always hoped for an opportunity to reconcile things with Hannah. … I don’t want any bad blood and wish her nothing but success.”
