CARRIED AWAY

Anderson Cooper Tries to Stop Andy Cohen’s Drunken CNN Midnight Rant

The CNN New Year host fought to keep his co-presenter’s post-midnight political chatter on the rails.

Andy Cohen tore into outgoing New York Mayor Eric Adams live on CNN moments after the Times Square ball drop as his co-host Anderson Cooper cringed and tried to shut it down.

Cohen, 57, and Cooper, 58, returned for their ninth straight year co-hosting “New Year’s Eve Live” which is supposed to be one of the news network’s few politics-free shows.

Instead, the Bravo star—drink in hand—started building up to a rant about Adams, 65, and his exit from City Hall. “Watching the final moments of Mayor Adams’s chaotic...” Cohen began at 12.10 a.m., before Cooper cut in fast: “Oh no. I’m out.”

Cohen tried again—“I just want to say…”—and Cooper shut it down a second time with a blunt “Don’t,” edging as if to walk off. The camera widened to keep him in frame as Cohen pushed through with a slightly slurred line: “He got his pardons.”

Cohen kept going, telling Adams to “go off into the sunset” and complaining about “what you’ve left us with,” while Cooper repeated: “I’m out.” At one point, Cooper summed it up for viewers: “He can’t help himself.”

Guest B.J. Novak also tried to defuse the moment as Cohen continued his gripe, saying: “They’re going to cut you off!”

“Is this how we are going to enter 2026,” Anderson sighed.

Cohen’s “pardons” crack looked like a misfire, as Adams did not receive a presidential pardon over his federal corruption case. A judge dismissed the charges with prejudice on April 2, 2025, meaning they could not be brought again.

Even Cohen briefly gave Adams a sideways compliment, noting he might have “dented the rat population”—after Adams’ office formally established a Mayor’s Office of Rodent Mitigation in December, just before he left office.

LOADED FUN

Andy Cohen Reveals If He’ll Be Drinking on NYE Broadcast

Adam Downer

Social media lit up as the exchange circulated, with users describing Cooper’s attempts to step out of frame as the night’s funniest moment. Posters said Cohen sounded drunk and delighted in Cooper’s deadpan “I’m out” refrain, sharing reaction gifs and strings of crying-laughing emojis.

A separate clip of their earlier, tipsy banter about sharing a bed and casting themselves as characters from the gay romance series “Heated Rivalry” also spread widely, topping 700,000 views as fans cheered the show’s party vibe online.

LOADED FUN

Andy Cohen Reveals If He’ll Be Drinking on NYE Broadcast

Adam Downer

CNN viewers had been expecting the traditional alcohol-infused show after Cohen confirmed last month on Watch What Happens Live: “We will be drinking. It’s my job to get Anderson drunk.”

Adams was succeeded as New York mayor at midnight on Jan. 1 by Zohran Mamdani, 34.

The Daily Beast has contacted CNN for comment.

Tom LatchemLead Global Correspondent

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