The Talk is no longer an exclusive all-girls club, with Jerry O’Connell replacing the departed Sharon Osbourne as the show’s newest co-host. The announcement was made on Wednesday’s episode, with Deadline confirming that O’Connell, who previously guest-hosted The Talk on several occasions in 2021, will be a permanent replacement. “It’s fun, it works, and we’re going to have a lot of fun. It’s real exciting,†he explained. “First of all, I want to say you ladies have been so welcoming to me. I mean, I came here as a guest months ago, and just from the moment I walked in, you’re just gracious, you’re kind, you’re fun, and it worked. And here we are. We’re going to have a lot of fun, we really are.â€
O’Connell’s appealing brand of nice-corny-guy humor joins Sheryl Underwood, Amanda Kloots, and Elaine Welteroth as a Talk talker, a chatty job that comes amid a tumultuous era for the show: Osbourne exited in March following an internal network investigation and allegations of racism, with CBS concluding that Osbourne’s behavior toward her co-hosts “did not align with our values for a respectful workplace.†Osbourne publicly apologized for her comments at the time, although she claimed that she had been “set upâ€Â by producers to be a “sacrificial lamb.†(Not a … sacrificial bat?) Additionally, fellow co-host Carrie Ann Inaba is currently taking a leave of absence from The Talk to focus on her mental health and well-being.