Summary
ABC’s daytime talk show,The View, has had 24 co-hosts around the table since its premiere in 1997, and Sherri Shepherd has the honor of being one of the longest-tenured on the show, making her departure particularly poignant.The Viewhas been a staple of daytime TV since Meredith Vieira, Star Jones, Debbie Matenopoulos, Joy Behar, and Barbara Walters sat around a semicircle table to discuss pop culture and sociopolitical news of the day from a woman’s perspective. Not necessarily a gossip show,the conversations are frequently thought-provoking and hotly debated.
Save for Joy Behar, noother co-host ofThe Viewfrom its original airing remains, and even Behar took seasons 17 and 18 off. Many personalities have come through the show, including comedian, actor, and TV personality,Sherri Shepherd,who first appeared onThe Viewin season 11along with Whoopi Goldberg. Shepherd, known for playing Angie Jordan in30 Rockand Evette Chase inThe Sex Lives of College Girls, stayed onThe Viewfor an impressive seven seasons, bringing her high energy and whip-smart comedy to the panel. The reason for her departure, however, was not completely contextualized.
The View: Joy Behar’s 8 Best Quotes
From jokes about religion, sex, and parents to body issues and the President of the United States, find out Joy Behar’s best quotes on The View.
Sherri Shepherd Likely Left The View Due To Contract Negotiations
Shepherd’s Controversies Likely Did Not Play Into Her Firing
Sherri Shepherd’s final episode was the season 17 finale in August 2014, and it was a farewell filled with many tearful hugs. It wasn’t stated why exactly Shepherd was leaving the show, but it appears that contract negotiations were the main reason for her departure, and her co-host Jenny McCarthy’s for that matter. According to sources, Shepherd was in negotiations to return toThe View, but she decided not to accept the terms offered by the network (viaThe Wrap).
While this not-so-secret parley was going on, the network also decided to fire McCarthy for unspecified reasons.
While this not-so-secret parley was going on, the network also decided to fire McCarthy for unspecified reasons. Oddly, after Shepherd announced her impending departure, McCarthy tweeted that she would quit in solidarity with Shepherd, despite sources saying she had already learned she’d be let go. So those tweets may be somewhat tongue-in-cheek.
Shepherd also took to social media to say goodbye, tweeting out a thank you to Barbara Walters andThe Viewfamily.
Contract negotiations are a fairly standard reason for people to depart a show, though some may have assumed Shepherd’s controversies were the reason for her exit. She’s made a few unpopular statements in her career, including stating she didn’t believe in evolution, claiming the world was flat, making some anti-LGBTQ+ remarks, and admitting she’s never voted for anything. With the pressures of a live show, these statements can be understandable mistakes, and she has apologized in the press for many of them, viaENews, saying,
“…I’d like to say I’m truly sorry to anyone I’ve offended with the viewpoints I expressed…”
The Viewis no stranger to rumors, and it’s unlikely any of these statements changed Shepherd’s career trajectory. It’s the contract negotiations that are the probable cause for her departure.
1-17
7-16
Shepherd Returned To The View In A Moving Tribute To Producer Bill Geddie
Shepherd Has Gone On To A Successful Career In Television
Sherri Shepherd did return toThe Viewin season 26, with other former hosts, to celebrate the life ofThe View’s founding producer, Bill Geddie, who passed away in July 2023 at the age of 68. Geddie had a huge hand in hiring the co-hosts of the show and was an important figure in their lives. Shepherd and the other hosts spoke about their reverence for Geddie. Goldberg said,
“When I was — I’m trying to find the right way to say it — I was asked to stay off for a week or two, they told me to take a break, and Bill wrote me and said, ‘You know this is the nature of this show, that’s why we brought you in. We’re paying you, we pay you to do this, we pay you to give your opinions. Not everybody’s going to like it, but don’t ever think that you did something you shouldn’t have done, because that’s what we do at The View.'”
Shepherd shared her relationship with Geddie,
“He absolutely changed my life because, back in 2007, when he asked me to come on, I was a single mother, just divorced, stand-up comic, didn’t know a thing about politics, and somehow he believed that people would relate to me. I think it was the first week I sat here, he fought for me to be here — no experience on a talk show — and I think my first week, didn’t I say I didn’t know if the earth was round or flat, I think? I do know that it is round, it was a brain fart. I think it was the first or second week, I said, ‘Bill, oh my God, I do know, I gotta go back on and say it,’ and he said, ‘No, this is ratings, baby! This is ratings!'”
Post-The ViewShepherd has gone on to more success, frequently appearing on television shows. She even hosts her own daytime talk show,Sherri, likely using the many lessons she learned from Geddie and the rest of her co-hosts.
The View
Cast
Created by legendary broadcast journalist Barbara Walters, The View is a daytime talk show that has aired on ABC since 1997. It features a panel of various women from different generations, backgrounds, and political affiliations discussing the day’s “Hot Topics” and interviewing celebrities and politicians.
