Kelly Ripa Hasn’t Returned to ‘Live’ Since Michael Strahan’s ‘GMA’ Announcement
Michael Strahan announced this week that he’d be leaving Live with Kelly and Michael for a full-time position over at GMA, and the former footballer’s co-host has not taken the news well… at all.
Ripa was reportedly blindsided by Michael’s announcement that he’d be leaving his co-hosting gig, with sources revealing that she didn’t learn about the decision too much longer before the rest of America. Sources told Us Weekly that she was “definitely blindsided by the Michael news” and took it as a “huge sign of disrespect” that nobody gave her any real notice.
Ripa hasn’t returned to her co-hosting duties since Strahan’s news was announced, with actress Ana Gasteyer filling in for her and leaving Strahan to make a statement about her absence and his departure. “Kelly is off today,” he told viewers. He went on to say that he’s still available to guest-host Live, and that he’ll always be grateful to his partner-in-crime, Ripa.
“I really want to thank of course Kelly Ripa because Kelly welcomed me here and I’ve learned so much from her,” he said. “She’s been an amazing influence on me and it has truly changed my life to be here with her. I know that the show will continue to be strong and great because of Kelly and Michael Gelman and the staff here. Everybody is so talented and this show has not been around for over 30 years by mistake … Kelly, I thank you and I love you and everyone else here at Live.”
So what’s next for the show? “Live continues to be a vibrant and enduring franchise under our lead host, the extraordinarily talented Kelly Ripa. Live has successfully transitioned co-hosts twice before and will do so again. Together with Kelly, ABC and the Live team will begin a new search to find a replacement for Michael,” an ABC spokeswoman told the New York Times in a statement.
Ripa is currently celebrating her 20th wedding anniversary on vacation with husband Mark Consuelos, which was planned for months, but there’s no real answer as to when she’ll return to the show. Ana Gasteyer and Erin Andrews have been holding down the fort all week, and Pretty Little Liars star Shay Mitchell will fill in on Monday.
Photo Credit:PRPhotos.com
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