Howie Mandel Says He 'Didn't Mean to Embarrass Anybody' After Apologizing to Kelly Ripa for On-Air Moment

Brenton BlanchetWed, April 1, 2026 at 4:59 PM UTC

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Howie Mandel; Kelly RipaCredit: Getty(2) -

Howie Mandel is sharing more about his viral exchange with Kelly Ripa on Live with Kelly and Mark

During a March 31 appearance on Hot Mics with Billy Bush, Mandel said he "didn't mean to embarrass anybody" after Ripa and Mark Consuelos commented on his appearance

"I hope it ends soon because I didn’t mean to cause any disruption," he said of attention on the interaction

Howie Mandel "didn't mean to embarrass anybody" after apologizing to Kelly Ripa over their awkward on-air exchange.

The comedian, 70, appeared on a Tuesday, March 31 segment of Hot Mics with Billy Bush, in which he reflected on the aftermath of his recent viral Live with Kelly and Mark moment and apology video.

During the March 23 episode of Ripa and Mark Consuelos' daytime talk show, Mandel had an awkward exchange with the hosts, who complimented Mandel's appearance and told him he looked "great" after discussing his age. Mandel argued that the compliment didn't "mean anything" as it came with a “caveat." Days later, he posted a video apologizing to Ripa and explaining that the comment was "meant as a joke."

Now, Mandel said he has regrets about sharing the Instagram post, adding that he "didn’t mean to cause any disruption."

“Obviously I told a joke that didn’t land well," Mandel said, as he appeared on Hot Mics wearing a new hairstyle and T-shirt of himself as a child.

He added, "Comedians always say, 'If you can make one person laugh, you’re doing the job.' But apparently that’s not enough... I’m reading and there’s no stopping it and I don’t understand. I tried to stop it. I tried to apologize. I agreed with people. I do."

Howie Mandel attends the 2023 UCLA Neurosurgery Visionary Award presentation on Oct. 11, 2023Credit: Greg Doherty/Getty

Mandel then said he didn't "know" who got offended by the on-air moment, despite "reading the articles" online. “If somebody is offended, if somebody feels that I did wrong, then I apologize. I don’t believe in apologizing but I said, as I said in that post — which, I kind of regret making the post," he said, before Bush asked him why.

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“Because I don’t think you should apologize for a joke," Mandel said. "And I do agree. People are saying it wherever I go now, I do think I look good. I don’t even think the caveat is for 70. I just think I look good.”

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As Mandel put it, up until "a couple weeks ago," he didn't "really focus" on his appearance. "I feel bad," he said. "I don’t know what’s going on and I don’t know when this will end. And I hope it ends soon because I didn’t mean to cause any disruption. I didn’t mean to embarrass anybody."

After Bush questioned the famously bald comedian about the "hair on your head" at the end of their discussion, Mandel jokingly sat in silence before storming out of the podcast studio and slamming the door on his way out.

In his apology video, uploaded on Saturday, March 28, the star said he doesn't think a comedian "needs to apologize for a joke" and that it's "hard" for him to do so publicly.

After apologizing to Ripa, Mandel called her "absolutely right." A few comedian friends sounded off about the ordeal in the comment section, as did Live with Kelly and Mark executive producer Michael Gelman, who commented that Mandel indeed looks great "for your age."

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”