Chelsea Handler To End Late Night Talk Show
It may not come as a huge surprise for anyone that’s following Chelsea Handler, but today the late night host announced that she’s ready to put Chelsea Lately to bed. The show, which has been on E! since 2007, is leaving the network.
This comes after rumors that Handler was all but done with the show and looking to collaborate with another network. Handler addressed her desire to leave back in March, but at the time E! wasn’t confirming that Handler was not renewing her contract. Today the powers that be spoke up and confirmed suspicions.
Suzanne Kolb, the President of E!, said of Chelsea Lately’s end:
“We are very proud of ‘Chelsea Lately’s’ long-running success and the unique space that the series carved out in late night television. Chelsea brought a distinct voice to late night with her acerbic wit and fearless commentary and we look forward to providing fans with a memorable send-off that lives up to that tradition.”
Chelsea Handler said in a statement about her time at E! using her terrific sense of humor to smooth over any awkward edges:
“I myself am more surprised than anyone that I was able to hold down a job for seven years, and it was a fantastic seven years. I will always look back at my time on E! as most people look back at their time in college. I’m glad I went.”
In response to Handler’s departure from the network, E! has decided to run a month-long program dedicated to special episodes and guests that Handler had on Chelsea Lately. The series finale of Chelsea Lately will air on August 26 on E!
When Handler announced that she might be jumping ship at E! many outlets put her at different late night networks such as CBS and even NBC, but Handler cleared the rumors during an interview with Howard Stern for his SiriusXM radio show. At the time Handler said that she had plans to take Netflix by storm.
Of the network itself and the decline of ratings for her talk show, she told Stern:
“They don’t know what they’re doing [at E!]. They have no ideas. It’s a failure.”
In addition to hosting her own late night show, Handler is a best-selling author. Handler has released My Horizontal Life: A Collection of One-Night Stands, Are You There, Vodka? It’s Me, Chelsea, and Chelsea Chelsea Bang Bang.
[Image via Bing]
