'The Talk' without Sharon Osbourne could face cancellation, ratings are 'in the toilet' with 'no star power'
The popular CBS daytime talk show ‘The Talk’ may be in more trouble than meets the eye. The show, as per insiders, is facing cancellation after Sharon Osbourne left. Osbourne exited ‘The Talk’ amid allegations of racist behavior. CBS made the announcement on Friday, March 26. “Sharon Osbourne has decided to leave ‘The Talk,’” the release from CBS said. “The events of the March 10 broadcast were upsetting to everyone involved, including the audience watching at home.”
“Sharon is walking away with a $5 to $10 million minimum payout and was able to spin that it was her decision [to leave the show],” a source said. A different source said that, under her departure agreement, Osbourne is also free to speak out. “Sharon will talk when she is ready,” the source said. “She still wants to give her side of the story. She has been on that show for 11 years and knows all the secrets.”
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The departure comes two weeks after she got into an on-air argument with her co-host Sheryl Underwood about Piers Morgan, and his treatment of Meghan, Duchess of Sussex. Following that, multiple sources, including former ‘The Talk’ co-host Leah Remini, claimed Osbourne used racist slurs when talking about others on the show. She allegedly referred to Julie Chen, who is Chinese American, as a “wonton” and “slanty eyes” and called former co-host Sara Gilbert, who is lesbian, as a “p***y licker.”
But this backlash and Osbourne’s exit have caused even more problems for the show. A source told The Sun that 'The Talk' now faces "cancellation", claiming that Osbourne was the star of the long-running show. The industry insider claimed: “Cancellation has to be on the minds of execs because this show is a bigger headache than it's worth dealing with. Ratings are still in the toilet and now the racism scandal makes it even less appealing to viewers. Many have vowed not to watch without Sharon on the show. Without Sharon there is no star power.”
The source also said celebrity guests are “canceling right and left and don’t want to be associated with the show,” adding, “The current hosts are D-list at best in the industry. Sharon had celebrity friendships that translated into bookings. Guests are also pissed off they were booked and canceled and rebooked and canceled again. It's a booking nightmare.”
Staff morale is “at an all-time low,” the source further claimed. They also said, “There's no faith in the leadership or direction of the show. The show has blown up in the staff’s faces and the show looks worse than Ellen did over the summer. It's all so humiliating.”
Earlier this month, Morgan took to social media to speak out against the other hosts of 'The Talk' for "shaming & bullying" Osbourne, and to demand an apology for "disgraceful slurs" against him. Morgan tweeted this in response to an apology tweeted by Osborne in the aftermath of her defense of Morgan as she asked her co-hosts to give examples of when Morgan had been racist.
Sharon's been shamed & bullied into apologising for defending me against colleagues accusing me of racism because I don't believe Meghan Markle's bullsh*t.
— Piers Morgan (@piersmorgan) March 12, 2021
This is where we've reached.
I demand an apology from those @TheTalkCBS bullies for their disgraceful slurs against ME. https://t.co/kguRA8KVPJ