When The Ellen Degeneres Shows’ abruptly ended, it seemed as if talk show formatting was on the decline. Instead, the format is as popular as ever with multiple already-popular names in the talk show universe. At the heart of it is none other than American Idol winner Kelly Clarkson, who arguably revived the talk show genre.
Who Took Over for Ellen Degeneres?
The Ellen Degeneres Show officially ended on May 26, 2022. Only a few months later, the decades-long show was replaced by The Jennifer Hudson Show on September 12, 2022. Bringing in American Idol alumna Jennifer Hudson was definitely a direct pick based on other shows that had been doing well on other networks.
Right off the bat, The Jennifer Hudson Show earned not-so-great reviews, stating that the show was “vague” in comparison to competitors. The show was also criticized for steering clear “of politics or Hudson’s innermost personal life, which would be completely expected, but from any tension or interest as well.” Hudson, as a talk show host, at the time “lacked momentum” so “guests often ended up steering the conversation.”
During the first week, Hudson was also compared to Kelly Ripa and Wendy Williams in a positive review of the show. According to this review, Hudson’s gratitude was the main character of the show.
This show continues to get renewed in current day, even though it’s faced previous criticism for filming during the 2023 Writers Guild of America strike, without writers. The show then announced production was paused and the premiere was postponed due to the strike.
Currently, The Jennifer Hudson Show is known for its viral “Spirit Tunnel” pre-show social media segment. If you haven’t seen it, the “Spirit Tunnel” features the show’s staff members hyping up and welcoming guests to the stage by lining the hallway and performing original changes based on guests’ names. This segment regularly brings in 10 to 100 million views on TikTok.
Kelly Clarkson is Dominating the Talk Show Universe
One of the biggest talk show faces to date has been American Idol winner Kelly Clarkson. Her show, which premiered on September 9, 2019, has not only dominated the ratings, but won eight Daytime Emmy Awards.
Since the show’s inception, it premiered with over 2.6 million views, which was the best premiere rating for a new first-run syndicated program since Katie in 2012. A month after the show’s premiere, it was revealed that The Kelly Clarkson Show repeatedly gained 1.9 million average views per episode, quickly making it the fourth most watched daytime talk show.
Since then, The Kelly Clarkson Show has continued to dominate the category. Its competitor, The Drew Barrymore Show, which began on September 14, 2020, had a much slower start. This show’s rating for the first season was down 14% at 600,000 viewers compared to Hot Bench, the show that the talk show took the place of. Nearly a month later, ratings had already dropped 38% since the premiere.
In recent years,The Drew Barrymore Show has begun earning more views. Nearly a year after its first season, the show drew an average of 740,000 viewers. The third brought in 1.21 million viewers, and finally the sixth season ratings also improved, making the show syndication’s #2 talk show. Number one is the morning talk show, Live with Kelly and Mark.
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Corey Cesare Corey Cesare is Talent Recap's Managing Editor and featured YouTube Host. She has a love of all things pop culture and an unhealthy obsession with celebrities. Corey earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism and Cinema/Screen Studies from the State University of New York at Oswego in 2021. She spends her spare time shooting astro, nature, and portrait photography, and coming up with movie ideas that she hopes to make into a film someday.
