"I'm Amanda F*cking Batula:" The 'Summer House' Star on Separating and Starting Over

When I take the Ludlow Hotel elevator to the penthouse suite to meet Amanda Batula, it’s been one month, down to the day, since announcing her divorce from Summer House co-star Kyle Cooke.

Batula is wearing a tan suede duster jacket and matching micro shorts, but swaps her photoshoot-ready heels for brown Ugg slippers—half glamorous, half the comfy bed bug viewers know and love from the reality show set in a Hamptons sharehouse. She gives me a tight hug and joins me on a beige boucle couch. It’s a loaded question, but I have to ask anyway: How are you, Amanda?

“Honestly, I feel like I’m on cloud nine. Unstoppable,” she tells me. “The past two weeks, I’ve never been happier.”

The couple’s separation is a Richter-scale shake-up in the Bravo universe. Cooke, 43, and Batula, 34, started dating in Summer House’s first season and were engaged by the end of season 3. After multiple postponements due to the COVID pandemic, they married on September 25, 2021, in Batula’s parents’ backyard. But the breakup isn’t exactly surprising to those who’ve followed the KyManda rollercoaster for the past 10 years.

Cooke is the founder of the alcoholic beverage brand Loverboy and has a new side gig as a DJ playing oontz-oontz EDM on college campuses and in Connecticut casinos. He’s boisterous, emotional, and considered the Peter Pan chapter president of Summer House. Batula is his foil in every way. The creative director and graphic designer—who joined Loverboy full-time in 2019 but stepped back in 2025—is understated, sardonic, and a professional bedrotter. In almost every episode, viewers watch Batula fall asleep by 11 p.m., while Cooke barhops around the Hamptons until the party’s died down. Rumors of Cooke cheating—some confirmed, others unsubstantiated—occasionally followed him home and became unfortunate, uncomfortable plot points the two navigated on-screen.

It makes sense, then, why Bravo-heads are drawing parallels between Batula and Ariana Madix, the Vanderpump Rules star, whose long-term boyfriend, Tom Sandoval, had an affair with their friend and fellow cast member, Raquel Leviss. Post-“Scandoval,” Madix’s profile exploded; she played Chicago’s Roxie Hart on Broadway, placed third on Dancing With the Stars season 32, and currently hosts Love Island USA on Peacock.

Batula doesn’t see it. “Everyone wants this big Ariana Madix moment for women who go through a breakup, but her situation was so different and so awful,” says the New Jersey native. “There's really no comparison. Kyle and I are good.” Even still, the Summer House star is receiving Madix-level mountains of support. Every time she posts on Instagram, the comments section turns into a prayer circle of positivity: “Girl who is going to be ok!” and “We love seeing you win” from fans; “Beautiful and strong” and red heart emojis from Real Housewives Dorinda Medley and Bronwyn Newport.

She’s feeling the love in her inner circle, too. She has a steadfast group of girlfriends, including fellow Summer House castmates Ciara Miller, Paige DeSorbo, and Lindsay Hubbard, sending near-constant “I love you! I’m proud of you!” texts. “I’m a good picker—when it comes to girlfriends,” Batula jokes. I ask about her father, Frank Batula, a fan-favorite Summer House side character who initially rejected Cooke's request for a marital blessing. “My dad’s not out there celebrating like everyone thinks he is. But he did send me flowers for Valentine's Day and a card that said ‘Happy Independence Day.’”

Batula is feeling happy in her independence. “I'm usually a very codependent person, but in the past few months, maybe even longer, I feel really comfortable doing things on my own.” She’s living alone for the first time in a new Manhattan apartment, too. “I don't have a couch yet, so the dogs and I spend most of our time in bed, which is what we would be doing anyway.”

As we continue our chat, Batula tells me about her separation from Cooke, the power of Prozac, why she’ll never be ashamed of smoking weed, and what’s next for her. “This isn't a new chapter; it’s a whole new book,” as she puts it.

Okay, deep breath. Can you detail the timeline of the separation?

I moved out in November. We were separated but agreed not to see other people. The plan was to date each other, work on our relationship, and take some space. But that space made us realize, well, maybe we want more space; that the separation should be permanent.

There has been a lot of speculation that we broke up before [Summer House season 10] started filming, that we've been separated for months, blah, blah, blah. But honest to God, we came to the decision to divorce a few days before we posted the announcement [on Instagram on January 19, 2026]. We were on FaceTime talking about us. I said I wanted to put out a statement about our relationship, and that’s when we decided to officially separate. We were also on FaceTime when we both posted our statements a few days later. It was a sad moment, but also a relief, and I'm really happy we did it together.

Tell me more about what ultimately led to the decision to divorce.

I could see what other people saw in us, why they didn’t think we should be together. We both knew what needed to be done, but neither of us wanted to pull the trigger. It was really heavy—we were both struggling with the decision to call it quits, and that’s where I faded away and lost myself a bit. But it just got to a point where I knew I had given the relationship everything I had, and there was no fight left in me. We looked at each other like, This isn't going to go anywhere.

On Summer House, you’ve mentioned feeling hidden in Kyle's shadow. Now that you’re out of the relationship, do you feel a stronger sense of identity?

For years, I was a very insecure, quiet person. Kyle lights up the room when he walks in. He’s the life of the party—that's why I fell in love with him—but it was easy to get lost behind that. His need to be social took over, and it made me nervous and lack a lot of confidence.

That Amanda feels like a different person compared to who I'm becoming right now. Making the decision to separate was, yes, a weight lifted, but between my antidepressants, going off birth control, being in my 30s—every day I'm feeling more and more like myself, and like a better person. I see the whole world differently. I have a different confidence now and give a lot of credit to the strong, powerful women who’ve been on the show with me for that. Witnessing them stand in their power—they’ve been great role models. Also, having my high school and college friends remind me of who I am, shaking me awake, saying, You can be your own person. That has definitely given me the boost to be like, You know what? They're right. I am an individual.

You’ve been very open about your mental health and struggles with depression. Did your mental health journey contribute to the separation in any way?

Yes and no. I was in such a low place, and when you're struggling like that, you don't want to do anything for yourself or anyone else. I would sit on the couch, spiral about the relationship, work, travel, and absolutely shut down. There was no world where I was capable of making decisions to help myself.

When you're able to turn off the voices and nonsense in your head, it's much easier to see things for what they are. The antidepressant opened my eyes, and I saw things differently. I knew more of what I was and wasn’t able to tolerate, what I deserved and what I didn't, and the respect I needed. But just because I started taking medication didn't make me get a divorce; it just made me feel like me again, and I was able to see the relationship for what it was, recognize that it wasn't working, and that neither of us was happy.

Totally. I'm on Prozac, too, and it does help mute the noise so you can be more objective when looking at your life.
 Plus, it gets easier to get out of bed in the morning.

Can I tell you? Kyle's biggest beef with me for so long was that he'd have to be my alarm and wake me up. I wake up before my alarm clock every single day now. I'm up between 7 and 8 a.m. just staring at my ceiling.
I'm a morning person now, which is crazy. That feels really good. Mind you, I don't get out of bed. I lay there like a rock on my phone or watching a show. I haven't changed that much.
I'm just awake now.

I want to discuss the internet reactions to your relationship. For years, fans have been rooting for your breakup, for you to leave Kyle. How did that factor into your decision?

It used to make me angry. Then it made me sad. Then confused. It’s part of why it took me longer than it should have to call it quits because I needed to feel 100 percent secure in my decision and absolutely certain it was mine and mine alone—that it wasn't coming from production, my friends, my family, or the audience. Maybe I would have left sooner if I had ignored it all, but it was so hard to filter out. It wasn’t like it was one comment calling you ugly. There were thousands of comments over the years of, 'Why are these two together?'

I also understood where people were coming from. They're watching the show and seeing us argue and not get along. But we had a whole relationship outside of filming, and we were working on things throughout, going to therapy, and having conversations. There were also three seasons of us living together, where things were good. It’s unfortunate because viewers didn't get to see all these little moments of us having fun, because, when we were filming, the bigger story often was that we were fighting. But in those tiny moments, it was very obvious why we were together. Our housemates saw it and understood why we were in love.

The online commentary has ramped up since the divorce announcement and with season 10 airing now. I see comments calling Kyle’s behavior toward you “toxic” and “emotionally abusive.” How are you dealing with that?

It’s horrible and so not helpful. We've already split up. It's done. I don't care how awful a person you think Kyle was or how terribly you feel he treated me. To attack him when he's also going through this separation, while he's also dealing with the pain and the fallout of the relationship—don't beat a man when he's down. We still love each other very much.

It was a huge fear of mine when we separated that he was going to get this treatment. It also stopped me from calling it quits on our relationship earlier because I don't want people to attack, hurt, or villainize him. He's not a bad person. We are two people who couldn’t make it work. It's unfortunate, but he doesn't deserve the hate he's getting. Let me hate that man. He doesn't need the entire internet doing it.

It's kind of like how I can call my family crazy—I've lived the experience, I have the authority—but you can't call them crazy.

Exactly. I can tell Kyle to shut the fuck up.
Ciara, Paige, and Lindsay can. If you've lived in a house with us, you can tell Kyle whatever you want. Nobody else can. If you want to support me, then just support me. You don't have to also tear him down.

I have so much love for Kyle and don't want to not have him in my life. It doesn't matter how much hate he's getting or how much positivity I'm getting because at the end of the day, it only matters that we're there for each other. Like with Paige [DeSorbo] and Craig [Conover]: I know Paige really wanted them to remain on good terms, and it’s really upsetting that it couldn’t happen. That’s why Kyle and I are both going above and beyond to make sure people know we’re on the same team. You might be choosing sides, but even we don't have sides. We’re still a unit here. Try to respect that, people.

I want to rewind back to where your head was at going into season 10. What was your headspace like when cameras went back up?

You can definitely tell I was at my wits’ end with Kyle. There was a lot that happened between us that spring, too, with him staying at a fan's house. We didn’t go into the house on good terms, and I clearly was not holding back at all. Watching it back, I feel really bad. You can tell how furious I was, how fed up and frustrated I was with the relationship. It pains me to watch myself talk to and treat Kyle that way. That's not who I am, and seeing myself do that is a reminder of how hard a time I was going through. Sometimes I find myself thinking about all the good times we had and getting sad, but then Tuesday night comes around, I watch an episode, and I'm like, Oh, right, that's why we're at where we're at right now. I will say that Kyle and I didn’t fight the whole summer. Every episode will not be us mad at each other. It gets better before it gets worse.

This is one of my favorite summers we've had at the house. It's a really good group of people. Living it, nothing felt performative. It’s raw and authentic—the honest mess we are.

It’s interesting to hear you say this is one of your favorite summers, considering months later, you and Kyle start the divorce process.

I think I knew the fallout with Kyle was inevitable, so I put our relationship aside and focused on my friendships in the house—which is probably why Kyle felt like I wasn't hanging out with him this summer, because I wasn't. I could have spent the whole time spiraling with him, but I chose to find my own happiness on the weekends with people who love and support me.

It would have been a very difficult summer to get through without
Ciara. She is one of the kindest, most loving, loyal friends I've ever had. She sends me texts out of the blue, reminding me how strong, powerful, smart, and kind I am—I don’t think she even realizes how much I need those texts. It’s also meant so much to me how supportive West [Wilson] has been throughout the season, sometimes in ways I wasn't even aware of when filming. It’s not performative; it’s just really authentic to who West is. He checks Kyle and puts him in his place, and you'll continue to see him be there for me throughout the season.

I want to talk about the fight at the 'Apology Dune'. Hearing Kyle say you lack “curiosity, drive, personality”—what was it like reliving that and watching that scene as a viewer?

God, that was really rough. I definitely disassociated in the moment. You can see me shut down and go into my own world. I didn't even know he said half of those things because I couldn’t hear him. No personality? A bitch has personality, okay!? I wouldn't be on TV if I didn’t!

A lot of people checked in on me after the episode aired. Kyle even texted me after and said it was a rough watch. The frustration and animosity outshined the love we had, and it became volatile. We could not see eye to eye or understand one another. The hatred came out. It was really difficult to relive, but it's a good reminder for both of us that we made the right decision to break up.

In that fight, you also mentioned the cheating rumors you received in your DMs. Have more rumors come out since your separation announcement?

I do fear that more people may start coming out of the woodwork. I've already seen posts about [him cheating] and people confirming certain things, which doesn't make me feel great, but I can't say I didn’t expect it, given all the rumors I’ve heard.

Have any of the rumors been confirmed?

They're never, like, confirmation confirmations. It's always, ‘My friend's friend saw this’, or ‘I heard from so-and-so’. It's never the person themselves. Normally, I’d send that stuff to Kyle. But it doesn't bother me anymore. I see it, and there’s no pit in my stomach. My heart doesn't sink. I'm just like, Okay, well, good thing we called it.

I imagine some of these rumors are like months and years old.

That part's annoying. Like, how am I finding out about ‘new’ things that happened years ago? Where are my girls’ girls? Hello? How do people have photos and no one shared anything? He's been wildly protected.


‘Protected’ by who? The Bravoverse? A boys’ club?

No, not a boys’ club. Kyle's a good-looking man. If you're out drunk and you make out with him, maybe you tell your friends and share photos with them, but your friends aren’t going to blow up your spot. So, I get it, it stays a secret. People also love being around him. He’s the life of the party, is so much fun, and brings energy into every space. People don't want to jeopardize that either. But you guys could have told me privately and given me a heads-up. Or come to me with something concrete. I wanted receipts, proof, timeline, screenshots—all of it.

I'm just living my life now. If more shit comes out, it's just another reminder of why we are where we are. And if people see him out with a girl, don't DM me because I don't need to know. Let him make out in peace.

I want to pivot to Kyle bringing up that you smoke weed this season. As a viewer, it seems like a familiar defensive pattern of his. He did it with Carl [Radke’s] drug use, and then he did it with you.

When Kyle brought it up on camera, it didn't have the same effect as when he outed Carl because I've always been very open about smoking weed. I’ve never been ashamed or tried to hide it. I smoke weed every night at the house on camera. We have a little balcony outside the primary bedroom, where I go out to smoke my little joint—Bravo just doesn’t air those scenes. There are also clips with my little weed pen right next to my Lafufu on the nightstand.

Also, we have a THC drink called Flowerboy, which Kyle consumes himself. So what the hell is the problem?
He just doesn't like that I smoke it. But let me do what I want to my body. You're destroying your liver; I’m destroying my lungs. We'll both die happy.

It did seem like he was trying to weaponize it against you. 


He absolutely was. He was trying to shame me, make me seem like a bad person, since I get high every night before I go to sleep. Some people get high all day. People go to work and walk around high. I'm not a social high; I need to be on the couch, in my own space, before bed. It doesn't affect my lifestyle in any way. That's why it was so crazy for him to say that. He really thought he had something on me there.

Was your recent TikTok, vaping into the camera with Olivia Dean’s “Be My Boyfriend” playing, you responding to when the episode aired?

Hah! Yeah, I have been taking little jabs [on social media] to take ownership and say I'm not going to be shamed for smoking weed. It’s legal. I'm not doing anything crazy. “I can do whatever, whenever the fuck I want,” as the great Olivia Dean said herself.

Do you have any interest in going into the weed business?
 I see a lot of jokes online about you starting a weed line.

I don't want to be the stoner girl and have it be my whole image, but I definitely want to explore more of the weed space. I will not be starting a business of my own. I watched someone very close to me start one, and it's a lot of very hard work. But I would love to come on to an existing brand and do my own line within it, whether it's my own strain, joints, papers, grinders, bongs, or smoking accessories.

This is a perfect segue into your career.
You've talked about sacrificing your professional ambitions for Kyle’s and wanting to carve out your own path separate from his. Now that you’re separated, what do you see for your career?

I’m leaning into content creation and the influencer thing, but I really want to get my hands on a brand and submerge myself. I’d love to come on as a guest creative director and work with the on-staff team to create something together, so it's not just me promoting X, Y, and Z. Similar to my swim collab with South Moon Under, where it’s a longer-term partnership where we're able to create together—that's what fills my cup. Anything I'm passionate about, I'm willing to get my hands on: fashion, jewelry, fragrance, pet products, bedding.

Your relationship aside, we've seen you grow up on the show.
 If 25-year-old Amanda from season one was sitting right there, what advice would you have for her?

I would tell her the same things that Ciara and Paige told me later in life: you are so much more than just your relationship with Kyle. You are Amanda fucking Batula. You shouldn't feel insecure.
You have so much going for you. You are loved by so many people. 
Also, get on Prozac now.

What about advice for people in relationships having issues with compatibility?

If you're sitting here hoping they can be a different person, you need to walk away. That's the biggest pill to swallow: not to fall in love with someone's potential but to love and accept them for who they are.
People keep telling me that I knew who I married, that Kyle has always been this way. But when you're younger, and you meet someone out at a club, you don't expect them to constantly be clubbing throughout your entire relationship. You expect people to mature—not to change, but to grow up, and with growth comes change. But they may never change, and sometimes love is not enough.

What about prenups?

Everyone needs a prenup.
It doesn't matter if you make millions of dollars or how in love you are. It’s like health insurance; you get it to protect yourself if something happens.

Prenups are also to avoid being responsible for someone else's debt. Kyle has this LoverBoy debt from a business loan he took out before we got married, and everyone's freaking out about it. If the business can't pay it back, then Kyle's responsible. To my knowledge and his understanding, [the debt] doesn't involve me in any way, but a prenup would have protected me 100 percent from it.

You and Kyle are co-dog parents. You work together on Summer House and In the City, which airs later this year. What do you hope for in your future relationship?

I like being around him and in his space; I just never liked being responsible for him. Being able to enjoy each other's company and then go home whenever I want, without worrying about him, is going to change our whole relationship. It’ll be so much easier for us to just be friends again. Like, let me host an event and have Kyle DJ it. That's what I want from our friendship: to see each other, hug, smile, and ask how each other is doing in life. I hope I meet his next girlfriend. I’ll give her a talking to. 


Enough about Kyle. Are you dating?

I am manifesting a boyfriend, but just a boyfriend. No one who’s looking for anything serious. I want to have fun with someone my age or younger, since I’ve always dated older. For now, while I heal, I just want to flirt and make out. To be taken on dates, and just enjoy being hot and happy. I'll find a husband later down the road—or maybe not.

What about your future? What do you want for this new-era Amanda?

When I first thought about leaving Kyle, I was so scared about starting over and having to find someone again. I'm 34. I'm not getting younger. Women have an unfortunate timeline when it comes to having children, and that freaked me out. But I think because of the medication and being in the headspace that I am, I'm not afraid anymore. I'm in a really good place with my mental health. I'm not ready to get pregnant right now anyway; I got another swimsuit shoot coming up, so I can't be having any buns in the oven. Fortunately, I can freeze my eggs, and there are many things I can do to hopefully give myself a shot at having kids later. I'm trying not to do any of that math, of, like, if I had a kid by 40, then I'll be 60 when they’re in college, or plan too much in the future.

What I’m hearing is that you’re just open in general—open to change, to wherever life takes you.

I used to be so afraid of change. In my home growing up, we had these cast-iron railings that my parents wanted to replace with beautiful, solid wooden ones. I literally handcuffed myself to the cast-iron railings and cried when the carpenter came to remove them because I did not want them to change anything.

This is the first time I'm looking forward to change and seeing it as a really good thing. What's meant for me will find its way to me. Things will happen when they're supposed to.

I’m living in the moment, which is something I don't think I've done in a while. We're keeping our head above water. We're binge-watching TV, and we’re working. We're taking our Prozac, smoking our weed, and cuddling our dogs.

Photographer Ruben Chamorro | Stylist Danielle Alix | Hair Stylist Olivia Halpin | Makeup Artist Taylor Fitzgerald | Creative Direction Montse Tanús | Entertainment Director Neha Prakash | Shoot location Ludlow Hotel