Hannah Berner Says Being Fired From 'Summer House' Gave Her the Ultimate Revenge

Sweet revenge is Hannah Berner turning her firing from Summer House and Bravo's Chat Room into comedy gold, ultimately landing two hit stand-up specials.

After being able to put some distance between that tumultuous time, Berner is reflecting on the tough moment that she now views as "iconic."

"It was a matter of, ‘You need everyone to be friends.' Not everyone was getting along. It was a choice … I was gonna be the one kiboshed," Berner said on Dax Shepard's Armchair Expert podcast. "I just say, getting fired [equals] star power. It's a thin line between love and hate. Getting fired, they were like, ‘You're too much for reality TV.' I was like, ‘Iconic.'"

Chat Room was Bravo's short-lived, Zoom-based talk show launched during the COVID-19 pandemic. The series struggled to find its footing and lasted just one season. Meanwhile, Berner's star was rising during her final season of Summer House, where she returned to the Hamptons hoping to explore unresolved feelings for Luke Gulbranson-only for him to arrive with newcomer Ciara Miller, setting the stage for one of the show's most memorable love triangles. She left both shows in 2021.

While some reality TV stars may have felt the firings were a gut punch, Berner said it only fueled her goals of letting her comedy career soar.

"I get a call, ‘You're fired from Summer House, you're fired from Chat Room.' And I remember thinking, ‘Now I need to get a Netflix special,'" she recalled. "I got such a chip on my shoulder. ‘Cause you have to be crazy to stand up every night. You have to have some kind of addict mentality. And I remember thinking, ‘I love when people put me down or cut me out, or I feel like no one wants me here.' And to come back stronger. I just love that. I love the rising of the phoenix. I love the underdog."

She added, "Also, no one in reality TV gets a Netflix special. So I was like, ‘Let's f-king go.' I never put any of my energy towards hurting anyone. I literally was like, ‘And now we're moving on.'"

Fast forward a few years, and Berner has multiple stand-up specials on streaming platforms like Netflix and Hulu. She's also the cohost of the Giggly Squad podcast, which boasts about half a million listeners every month.

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This story was originally published June 8, 2026 at 3:36 PM.