Kelly Ripa Was Missing from Today’s Episode of ‘Live’—Here’s What We Know

Published Mar 22, 2021

•

2:42pm

When we woke up, we expected to tackle our typical Monday morning routine, which consists of making breakfast, rescheduling our Zoom calls until later in the day and watching Live with Kelly and Ryan. However, everything changed when we realized that Kelly Ripa is MIA from today’s episode of the popular talk show.

It all started earlier this morning when producers shared a behind-the-scenes video on Live’s official Instagram account. The video not only confirms that Ripa is absent, but it also introduces her temporary replacement: TV personality Maria Menounos.

The clip was taken just moments before Live started filming the latest episode. “Just wait until you see this strut,” Menounos says. Right on cue, the guest co-host makes her grand entrance alongside Ryan Seacrest.

The caption read, “@mariamenounos is guest cohosting today!”

Unfortunately, we don’t know why Ripa was absent from Live. However, this isn’t the first time she’s had a temporary replacement. Earlier this year, the actress left Seacrest with a special guest co-host: Ali Wentworth. Before that, Seacrest was MIA for multiple episodes, which forced Ripa to helm the show with a variety of fill-ins, like Andy Cohen and Anderson Cooper.

So, how long will Ripa’s absence last? Only time will tell, but we really hope it’s short-lived. (No offense, Menounos.)

Want more Kelly Ripa news sent right to your email inbox? Be sure to subscribe here.

Greta Heggeness

Senior Editor, News and Entertainment

Writes and edits news and entertainment content
Specializes in breaking celebrity news, royal family coverage and TV show and movie recommendations
Has 9 years experience in entertainment coverage

read full bio