The Real Reason Alex Cooper And Sofia Franklyn Aren't Friends Anymore
The podcast "Call Her Daddy" started as a show about two friends/roommates who had a fun and raunchy take on dating in your 20s. However, that version of the podcast ended in a headline-making feud between hosts Alex Cooper and Sofia Franklyn, as well as Barstool Sports. These days, Cooper is still doing the show solo, all because of a falling out that involved not only the hosts, nicknamed "The Fathers," and the company, but also Franklyn's boyfriend.
Per Refinery29, "Call Her Daddy" started in 2018 when Cooper and Franklyn decided to create a podcast together. A month later, the show got picked up by Barstool Sports, where its large following made Cooper and Franklyn stars.
However, in 2020, things took an interesting turn when the episode titles appeared to contain cryptic messages about The Fathers being prisoners, per Refinery29. In the final episode, they even played Kesha's poignant song "Praying" for fans to "interpret that however you want." Later, they asked fans to use the hashtag "#FreeTheFathers," even though they legally couldn't tell them why. It turns out it was all about contract negotiations with Barstool Sports. The two women reportedly wanted more money since the show was such a success. Yet their boss, Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy, had a different take on what was happening, and he took to the podcast in an episode titled "Daddy Speaks" where he claimed the show was secretly being shopped around — allegedly by Franklyn's boyfriend, HBO executive Peter Nelson.
There was serious drama over money
It seems that contract negotiations, which "Call Her Daddy" hosts Alex Cooper and Sofia Franklyn both appeared to have wanted, ended their friendship. Refinery29 reports that following the "#FreeTheFathers" drama, Barstool Sports founder David Portnoy offered Cooper and Franklyn a salary of $500,000 with bonuses, and six months off their initial contract (in order for them to pursue other ventures).
Franklyn then blamed Cooper in an Instagram video, accusing her of negotiating with Portnoy behind her back and wanting more control of the podcast. In her own video, Cooper explained that Franklyn kept asking for more money from Barstool, whereas Cooper wanted to accept the deal, and their lawyer noted they were very much "not on the same page." Cooper took the deal — and Franklyn didn't.
Cooper went on to host "Call Her Daddy" solo and later dished (via E!), "Sofia did not take the deal and when it got held up and there were no more points coming from her side, we had to move forward without her... Everyone realized she's never gonna be happy."
Franklyn eventually started her own podcast "Sofia With an F," and their relationship is still on the rocks. She later said on another podcast that she "confused [her relationship with Cooper] with a friendship, and it really was just a business ploy on her end." Still, she's open to a reconciliation — and so are fans.