Howie Mandel Issues Rare Apology to Kelly Ripa After Viral Joke Controversy

Sheri ReedSun, March 29, 2026 at 3:52 PM UTC

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(Photo by Julian Hamilton on Getty Images)

Comedian Howie Mandelcould be getting a little heat for the "joke" he made to Kelly Ripa on Live with Kelly and Mark last week. The awkward moment did go viral and started some important conversation, and today he's issuing a rare apology of sorts to the beloved host.

In case you missed it, Mandel was a guest on the talk show this week, in part, celebrating his 70th birthday. Both Ripa and her co-host husband Mark Consueloswere attempting to shower Mandel in compliments about his healthy physique and his looks.

After talking about his 70-year milestone, Ripa said, “That doesn’t make any sense.”

Mandel interrupted her saying, “What do you mean that doesn’t make any sense?”

And Ripa continued to say, “Because you look…”

This led to an awkward back and forth where Mandel explained (kiddingly?) he didn't like hearing he looked good only in in context with his age, and Ripa tried to clarify that wasn't what she was saying at all.

That's when Mandel dropped his joke, “”It’s like saying you’re smart for a stupid person.”

(We previously called out how Ripa, probably unwittingly, did use ageist language, despite how very socially acceptable it is to do so.)

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Related: Howie Mandel, 70, Calls Out Kelly Ripa, 55, for Using Ageist Language

There are unconfirmed rumors that Ripa was upset by the joke. Perhaps this is why Mandel is now struggling really, really hard to apologize in his very Howie Mandel type of way.

Mandel posted the message to Ripa via his Instagram, stating he's been debating for 48 hours on whether or not to do it. "Philosophically I don't believe that somebody's who's a comedian needs to apologize for a joke," Mandel says. "It is a joke. It is meant as a joke. And it's not meant to offend. You can not like it ... In all my 50 years in the business, I haven't ever publicly, kind of, apologized for ... So this is incredibly hard for me."

After a pause, he says, "But this is for Kelly Ripa ..."

Take a listen to Howie Mandel's attempt at an apology for Kelly Ripa:

Well, at least we know where Mandel stands for now. Actually, take that back. It might be impossible to ever know where Mandel truly stands—or where the joking begins and ends.

It certainly doesn't appear his ego has truly taken a hit due to Ripa's comments—but for the record, we're still not gonna cosign the way she approached her compliment.

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This story was originally published by Parade on Mar 29, 2026, where it first appeared in the News section. Add Parade as a Preferred Source by clicking here.

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Source: “AOL Entertainment”