‘AGT’: See Howie Mandel Joke About Sofía Vergara Divorce

Martin Holmes August 23, 2023, 10:27 am

The judges on America's Got Talent — NBC/YouTube

Howie Mandel tried to play matchmaker on Tuesday’s (August 22) live episode of America’s Got Talent, as he joked that his fellow judge Sofía Vergara is single and ready to mingle following her divorce from Joe Manganiello.

The moment came after 12-year-old ventriloquist Brynn Cummings wowed the judges with her performance, which included a funny skit in which she set Heidi Klum up with an eligible bachelor puppet named Lovebird. But Mandel had some advice for her next performance.

“You’re adorable,” Mandel said. “I love that you blend magic and ventriloquism. You deserve to be here. I hope America loves you. If I had one word of advice, if you’re looking for eligible bachelors, you should have talked to Sofía because she’s in the market right now.”

While some of the audience reacted in shock to Mandel’s comment, Vergara appeared unfazed, responding by throwing her hands into the air and cheering, “Yeah!”

Host Terry Crews then stepped in, telling the Mandel, “No, we’re not doing that here.”

Vergara and Manganiello announced their separation in July, citing “irreconcilable differences” as the reason for their break-up.

“We have made the difficult decision to divorce,” the couple shared in a statement to Page Six. “As two people that love and care for one another very much, we politely ask for respect for our privacy at this time as we navigate this new phase of our lives.”

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The couple first met at the White House Correspondents’ Association dinner in 2014 and married a year later in Palm Springs, Florida.

Despite the divorce, Vergara seemed to be in good spirits on AGT and was a fan of Cummings’ performance, even if the Modern Family alum had trouble pronouncing “ventriloquism.”

“That was amazing,” Vergara said. “Because it’s so unique, on a show where we’ve seen everything, we’ve seen so many ventrickleists [sic], so you [to also] do the mentalism, I can’t imagine the amount of concentration you need to do both things. And yet, you seem so composed.”

“What two things?” Mandel asked her to clarify.

“The mentalism… and the ventrickleism [sic],” she answered with a laugh.

America’s Got Talent, Season 18, Tuesdays & Wednesdays, 8/7c, NBC