Kelly Ripa STUNNED By News Of Michael Strahan Leaving “Live! With Kelly & Michael”
It looks like we weren’t the only ones shocked by the news that Michael Strahan is LEAVING Live With Kelly & Michael.
He reportedly didn’t tell co-host Kelly Ripa, either.
Source: Steve Granitz / Getty
The news broke yesterday that the former NFL player would be exiting Live with Kelly & Michael, which he’s co-hosted for nearly four years, to become a full time anchor on Good Morning America (which he currently appears twice a week).
According to TMZ, shortly after Tuesday’s episode of Live, Strahan pulled aside Ripa and the talk show’s executive producer, Michael Gelman, to inform them of his planned departure MINUTES before it was made public. Sources further tell the site that both Ripa and Gelman were “stunned and upset” by the news. He supposedly had been told by executives not to discuss the new deal before it was official. Disney is now looking for a replacement.
Source: Ilya S. Savenok / Getty
Strahan will join GMA full time starting in September, while he’s expected to exit Live sometime this summer.