Kelly Ripa Co-Host: Strahan Comments Irk ABC, October Guest Hosts Continue

The Kelly Ripa co-host search resumes on Live with Kelly next week as Ripa welcomes new and returning celebrity guest hosts to kick off October. Meanwhile, former Live co-host Michael Strahan’s recent remarks concerning his tenuous on-air friendship with Kelly have reignited the one-time Live duo’s television feud — Ripa and Strahan’s divergent perspectives on Michael’s May Live exit continuing as a point of contention between the two.

In a bombshell interview with People last week, bygone Kelly Ripa co-host Michael Strahan called out Kelly Ripa for her unfriendly behavior toward the end of their joint broadcasting tenure on Live. Admitting that he “learned a lot from her” during their Live partnership, the magazine describes Kelly Ripa and Michael Strahan’s relationship as “irreparably damaged.” Strahan told People that he’s not even certain if Kelly was ever really his friend.

“At one point I think we were friends. I don’t know what happened at the end.”

Reportedly, Strahan’s truthful retelling of his unresolved Kelly Ripa issues have incensed Live with Kelly broadcaster, and network of Michael’s current Good Morning America gig, ABC. A piece from Page Six quotes a source close to the matter in revealing the company’s apparent anger over Strahan’s comments in the explosive People interview, indicating that the organization’s higher-ups were eager to consider the Ripa-Strahan issue resolved.

“They are pissed at him for mentioning Kelly Ripa in his interview. Big surprise there. They thought he was over it, and here he is rehashing it. It’s sort of obvious they wouldn’t be happy… Everyone thought he’d moved on.”

As previously reported by the Inquisitr, Ripa recounted that tensions were high during Michael’s departure from the former Live with Kelly and Michael show last spring. As was widely covered at the Inquisitr and elsewhere, Kelly reportedly was unaware of Michael’s plans to jump ship for Good Morning America until the very day the news was made public. Ever since that fateful day, Ripa and Strahan’s relationship has seemingly been strained.

The ongoing search for a new Kelly Ripa co-host has supposedly been underway since Strahan’s last broadcast on the morning of May 13. In Michael’s stead, a horde of guest co-host stars have filled in on Live with Kelly, including the 45-year-old Ripa’s longtime husband and former All My Children co-star, Mark Consuelos. Diehard Live viewers are currently weighing the options among Kelly’s frequent favorite guest co-hosts like newsman Anderson Cooper, former The Wonder Years actor Fred Savage, and Stand by Me star and Rebecca Romijn beau Jerry O’Connell.

Kelly's guest co-hosts the week of October 3rd! #LiveKelly #LiveKellyCohost @mrjerryoc @thefredsavage @aplusk pic.twitter.com/6v3IscGw8i

— LIVEKellyRyan (@LiveKellyRyan) September 21, 2016

Kelly’s Live co-host guests for the last week of September and beginning of October are lending credence to the claim that these upcoming broadcasts may be the final so-called “try-outs” for Ripa’s new permanent co-host. Specifically, Savage and O’Connell seem to be fighting for the lead as Kelly’s co-host race draws to a close. This week, Jerry O’Connell will be Kelly’s co-host for three consecutive days, from Wednesday, Sept. 28, through Friday, Sept. 30, following classical singer Josh Groban’s stint as Ripa’s co-host on Monday, Sept. 26, and Tuesday, Sept. 27.

As reported by The Wrap, Kelly Ripa’s co-host will again be Jerry O’Connell at the start of October. O’Connell returns to Ripa’s side for the Live with Kelly broadcast on Monday, Oct. 3. Directly thereafter, Fred Savage does another three-day stint as Ripa’s co-host on Tuesday, Oct. 4, Wednesday, Oct. 5, and Thursday, Oct. 6. Seeming co-host wildcard and Mila Kunis’ husband, Ashton Kutcher, drops in as Live with Kelly‘s co-host on Friday, Oct. 7.

Who do you think should be Kelly Ripa’s co-host? Reportedly, Ripa’s co-host decision is just around the corner for November sweeps season. Would you pick either Fred Savage or Jerry O’Connell in place as Ripa’s sidekick? It certainly appears that these two actors may be the frontrunners for the Live with Kelly position. Is there another guest host you’d prefer? Let us know your choice for Kelly’s new co-host in the comments section below.

[Featured Image by by Mike Coppola/Getty Images]