Bravo NOT Doing a 'Gay' Version of Their "Housewives" Franchise

Despite reports last month from the New York Daily News that Bravo Executive Vice President Andy Cohen had issued casting call for a "gay" version of their Housewives franchise to compete against Logo's recent The A-List: New York, Bravo executives tell AfterElton exclusively that no such show is in the works.

Says Bravo Media president Frances Berwick, "No, we’re not doing a version of that [a gay Housewives]. It would not be wildly outside of our milieu to do something that focused specifically on gay characters. But as to doing Real Gay Housewives, we’re not going there. Or something like The A-list, although I never saw a full episode, we wouldn’t do that."

The denial comes despite the fact that sites such as AccessHollywood have already reported the show has been cast. After those initial reports, Cohen took to Twitter saying, "Do you really think we would have a show called top to the bottom!?"

Many found that denial unconvincing as it seemed to be disavowing only the title itself.

AfterElton also spoke with Lauren Zalanick, President NBC Universal Women and Lifestyle Entertainment Networks, who echoed Berwick's comments. Asked about reports Cohen had a "gay" Housewives show in the works, Zalanick says, "He has never talked about a gay male version of the Housewives. I’ve never heard him say that, and I don’t know why he would."

Asked about the online reports, she says, "It’s made up, I’m telling you. There’s absolutely nothing in development and never has been. I will say we do have casting out there around a group of gay guys. In terms of Andy casting it, we have a team. We have a couple [of different shows]. I would say, really early days, we’re in development, but we’re also developing a ton of other things."

Berwick stressed that gay men would stay part of Bravo's vision: "I will say that at any one time, including right now, we have over fifty shows in development, and many of them are focused on groups of people, and I will tell you that we have a couple that are focused on groups of same-sex people. But as to any similarity with any of our existing shows, or any show, including The A-List, there will be none."

Introducing the Cast of LOGO's "Gay Housewives of New York"

We got wind of the cast of Logo's new "gay housewives" show. And it's filled with just the fame-hungry, attractive, horrible people you could have imagined. They're all models! This is going to be a fantastic mess.

The show, which was initially called Kept, is now tentatively being called The A List and is scheduled to air on Logo sometime this fall after taping in NYC this summer. Just as we told you—and despite his denial at first—D-lister and former reality show contestant Reichen Lehmkuhl has signed up to be a part of the cast along with his boyfriend. That means of the six people cast on the show, five of them work as models, have worked as models, or claim to work as models. Yay, abs and shallowness! Let's meet our gaggle of famewhores, shall we?

Reichen Lehmkuhl
Occupation: Professional arm candy
Stats: The former The Amazing Race winner has left his Air Force past behind and now makes his living as a professional attractive gay with his own beefcake calendars, soft-core television roles, and jewelry line. He wrote a book too. He really wants to be famous. Also, he thinks we're imbeciles and can't spell.
Claim to Fame: Was the boyfriend that helped Lance Bass come out of the closet.
Housewife Equivalent: Gretchen Rossi.

Rodiney Santiago
Occupation: Model
Stats: This Brazilian didn't make it in Miami or Los Angeles so now he and his boyfriend Reichen are moving to New York to take the world by storm.
Claim to Fame: He's dating Reichen.
Housewife Equivalent: Simon van Kempen.

Mike Ruiz
Occupation: Photographer
Stats: A LA-based muscle daddy, Ruiz is like a real actual photographer who has talent and makes a living shooting for Interview and Vanity Fair. He's appeared on shows like America's Next Top Model and RuPaul's Drag Race, so it's obvious he wants to be as famous as the people he shoots.
Claim to Fame: Has photographed Tyra Banks, Dolly Parton, Lindsay Lohan, Kathy Griffin, and a bunch of other celebrities.
Housewife Equivalent: Vicki Gunvalson.

Austin A.
Occupation: Supposedly a model, but we're not quite sure.
Stats: After doing mysterious work in Los Angeles and London he is returning to New York to create a whole lot of drama on TV.
Claim to Fame: Dated Marc Jacobs for a hot minute.
Housewife Equivalent: Danielle Staub.

Derek Lloyd Saathoff
Occupation: A former model turned modeling agent.
Stats: Derek is a golddigger who already lives in a really nice apartment in Chelsea. He likes to party, is out all the time, and the gay gossips about town are already talking about him being on the show. He should be a big hit.
Claim to Fame: Look at her! What do you think?
Housewife Equivalent: Jill Zarin.

Ryan Nickulas
Occupation: Hair salon owner
Stats: We couldn't find much about Ryan, so the jury is still out. What we do know is that he and his partner are looking to adopt. Aw, cute little gaybies on TV!
Claim to Fame: He once did Madonna's hair. (OK, I made that up.)
Housewife Equivalent: Bethenny Frankel.

"The Gay Housewives of New York" in the Works!

The team behind the Real Housewives of Atlanta are working on an all-gay version of the franchise, reports Gawker.

The reality series is tentatively titled "Kept" and will air on Logo, a channel specifically aimed at gay people.

The show has not been cast yet but will follow an elite group of fabulous Manhattan party boys who love living the high-life.