The meteoric rise of the “Call Her Daddy” podcast in 2018 was nothing short of a cultural phenomenon, turning roommates Alex Cooper and Sofia Franklyn into household names. For a brief, explosive period, they dominated the digital airwaves, capturing a massive audience of young women with their unfiltered, often provocative stories about dating and sex. However, behind the scenes, this massive success was teetering on a fragile foundation. By 2020, as the podcast achieved peak relevance, the rapport between the two hosts began to fray, and legal disputes over their contracts at Barstool Sports turned their professional partnership into a public, messy spectacle that captivated the internet.
In his new book, Cancel Me If You Can, Barstool founder Dave Portnoy pulls back the curtain on the intense, high-stakes negotiations that occurred during that period. According to Portnoy, the tension wasn’t just about money or intellectual property; it was fueled by a deep, unspoken rivalry between the two hosts. While Portnoy claims Cooper was initially willing to stay if they could retain the rights to their show, Franklyn was reportedly determined to cut ties with Barstool entirely. This divergence created a power struggle that forced Portnoy into a defensive position, leading him to warn them firmly that he would sue if they attempted to move the show to a competitor before their contracts had officially expired.
The most explosive revelation in Portnoy’s account suggests that the situation almost took a dark, calculated turn. Portnoy writes that Cooper allegedly confessed to him there was a contingency plan in place: if he refused to meet their demands regarding their intellectual property, the duo intended to falsely accuse him and Barstool of sexual harassment. Portnoy characterizes this not just as a business maneuver, but as a “game plan” designed to bypass the reality of their contract by weaponizing the court of public opinion. He admits that even though he maintains the allegations would have been entirely false, he knew that the nature of his public reputation would have made it nearly impossible to win that narrative war.
Portnoy’s decision to share this detail is clearly heavy, and he acknowledges the severity of making such an accusation. In a media landscape where his public image has often been scrutinized, Portnoy admits that a false charge of workplace misconduct would have likely destroyed his company’s reputation regardless of the truth. He reflects on how, in modern media, “nobody would have believed my side of the story.” This admission highlights the precarious position of business owners who feel vulnerable to the power of social media narratives, where the mere accusation can sometimes be treated as a verdict before anyone has the chance to prove their innocence in a courtroom.
Despite the intensity of these claims, the aftermath of the fallout unfolded in a way that eventually favored the individual talent. Alex Cooper ultimately stayed with Barstool long enough to secure the ownership of her intellectual property, eventually moving “Call Her Daddy” to Spotify in a deal that reportedly brought her $20 million annually. Sofia Franklyn, meanwhile, pivoted to launch her own solo project, “Sofia with an F.” The friction that Portnoy describes—a mix of personal animosity between the co-hosts and a ruthless pursuit of media independence—seems to have been the catalytic force that blew up their partnership once and for all.
Ultimately, this story serves as a fascinating look at the “dirty little secret” of the creator economy: the volatile synergy between massive success and interpersonal collapse. While Cooper and Franklyn have not responded to these specific claims, Portnoy’s account emphasizes how quickly a professional agreement can devolve when ego, money, and conflicting visions collide. The saga of “Call Her Daddy” remains a cautionary tale about the complexities of viral fame, highlighting how the stories told behind the microphones are often far less complex than the legal and personal drama happening in the boardroom.