On late Friday, the news quietly dropped, Sharon Osbourne is leaving The Talk, CBS' long-running daytime talk show, being the final original cast member on the show.
A quick recap: Osbourne's talk show, The Talk, went on an extended hiatus two weeks ago after a confrontation between Osbourne and her co-host Sheryl Underwood over a discussion on whether comments made by Piers Morgan were racist.
Osborne was confrontational during the debate and at one point said "Don't try and cry because if anyone should be crying, it should be me." You can watch the original clip and see the context here. At this point, the show went on hiatus for two days while producers at CBS looked into the matter. One of her former co-hosts, Holly Robinson Peete publicly accused Osbourne of once claiming that she was "too ghetto" to be on the talk show.
After that accusation, reporter Yashar Ali posted a new article detailing accusations of verbal abuse and racism against the Osbourne matriarch. Former co-host Leah Remini and other anonymous sources confirmed that Osbourne called former co-host Julie Chen "slanty eyes" and a "wonton" and called co-host Sara Gilbert, a lesbian, a "pussy licker" and a "fish eater." Remini accused Osbourne of hurling racist Italian slurs in her direction as well.
Deadline reports that Osbourne "“made the decision to depart the show.” Here is CBS' full statement:
The events of the March 10 broadcast were upsetting to everyone involved, including the audience watching at home. As part of our review, we concluded that Sharon’s behavior toward her co-hosts during the March 10 episode did not align with our values for a respectful workplace. We also did not find any evidence that CBS executives orchestrated the discussion or blindsided any of the hosts.
At the same time, we acknowledge the Network and Studio teams, as well as the showrunners, are accountable for what happened during that broadcast as it was clear the co-hosts were not properly prepared by the staff for a complex and sensitive discussion involving race.
During this week’s hiatus, we are coordinating workshops, listening sessions and training about equity, inclusion and cultural awareness for the hosts, producers and crew. Going forward, we are identifying plans to enhance the producing staff and producing procedures to better serve the hosts, the production and, ultimately, our viewers.
Osbourne went into in full PR-recovery mode last week, sensing she was off the show. She gave a quote to UK gossip rag The Daily Mail denying ever saying anything racist, while then repeating the racist phrase. She called the claims 'crap, all crap,' adding "Everyone's got an opinion or a story like the wonton story. It's like fuck off with your fucking wonton story. Fuck off!
"Everybody's got an opinion and everybody's got a voice – it's fine. It's about knowing somebody's been called out for something and then somebody else is like, 'yes!! I'm going to add something too.' Of course, it's a pile on. People want to add fuel to the fire and it comes with the territory and that's fine."
In an interview with Entertainment Tonight, Osbourne called the entire incident "the biggest setup ever." She claims she was only told about the Piers segment moments before going on the air, and claimed the questions she was asked were written on her co-hosts' index cards, but not her own.
She told ET “And I’m like, ‘I’ve been set up,' And I went like, how DARE you all do this to me! I’m your sacrificial lamb.”
Naturally, Osbourne pits the blame on cancel culture: “I think that CBS was so horrified with Piers for the things he was saying. Because remember, Harry and Meghan– it’s a CBS interview,” she said. “I had sided with Piers, so, it’s the cancel culture isn’t it? ‘Throw her under the bus.'”
“People who are let go along the way get pissed off,” Osbourne added. “I’m the big girl with the big mouth, so they fire at me. But I’m not a fool. Don’t accuse me of something that’s a lie.”
Osbourne has yet to offer any comments about officially leaving the show.
