Michael Avenatti on What Happened After His On-Air Battle With Tucker Carlson

There’s no love lost between Stormy Daniels attorney Michael Avenatti and Fox News, and there are particularly hard feelings between the lawyer and primetime host Tucker Carlson, who has repeatedly derided him as the “Creepy Porn Lawyer” over the past few months.

On Thursday night, Avenatti appeared on Tucker Carlson Tonight, and things went poorly, as the two sparred for about 13 minutes.

After the interview ended, the tensions continued, Avenatti told The Hollywood Reporter on Friday morning. “After we went off the air, I repeatedly told Tucker Carlson directly to his face that he and the show and the network was a joke,” he said.

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Avenatti was even more angered when he realized that Carlson’s show had labeled him as “Creepy Porn Lawyer” in onscreen chyrons, after the host had said he wouldn’t call him names.

The lawyer, who is weighing a 2020 presidential bid, said his off-air confrontation with Carlson lasted about 10 seconds. “I would call it less than friendly,” he said when asked to describe the tone of the conversation. “He didn’t have any response.” He then left the set.

Carlson’s show reached out to Avenatti to set up the interview, following the lawyer’s attacks on Carlson on The View on Wednesday morning, when he called the host a “pig.”

Assessing his sparring match with Carlson, Avenatti called it “a moderate success,” adding, “I think he came away looking very bad.”

He also said there’s “no way” that Carlson didn’t know his show was referring to him as “Creepy Porn Lawyer” during the segment. At the beginning of the segment, Carlson had said, “Tonight, as a gesture of goodwill, we will not use that nickname, because we’re always grateful when guests are brave enough to show up in person, including in this case.”

Not only did the show’s chyrons refer to Avenatti as “Creepy Porn Lawyer” repeatedly during the interview, Carlson ended it by saying, “Creepy porn lawyer, great to see you.”

The online version of the interview Fox News posted did not include Carlson calling him “Creepy Porn Lawyer” at the end of the segment. He also used the moniker when tossing to his colleague Sean Hannity.

Asked for his response to Avenatti’s criticisms, Carlson told THR only (through a spokesperson): “I’d encourage everyone to watch the segment.”

In April, Avenatti criticized Fox News anchor Martha MacCallum for telling her viewers that he “abruptly canceled” a planned interview.

Asked Friday whether he’d appear again on Fox News as a guest, Avenatti said he hasn’t decided.