Michael Strahan Really Does Not Miss Co-Hosting ‘Live’

After making an abrupt exit from the popular morning show in May, Michael Strahan says he does not miss Live. The NFL star turned talk-show host spoke with Chelsea Handler about his emotions about leaving the show to join Good Morning America full time.

“I really haven’t had a chance to watch [Live]” Strahan stated during an interview on a Netflix episode of Chelsea. “But I think I’ve been working so hard for the last seven or eight years since I retired from football, that it’s been a relief.”

44-year-old Strahan is scheduled to be hosting a new game show called $100,000 Pyramid and is slated to join GMA for an expanded role coming this September. His former co-host Kelly Ripa has not yet found a replacement for Strahan but will keep continuing the search in order to find another full-time host. Strahan replaced former host Regis Philbin in September of 2012 after Philbin retired from the doing the morning show.

Strahan stated regarding Live, “I really haven’t missed it.” He continued, “But I loved it. Don’t get me wrong. I loved it. When you get a break, sometimes you kind of go, ‘Wow, I kind of needed it.’ I needed a break.”

Strahan’s departure from Live came sooner than expected as tensions were evident between Strahan and Ripa, who felt blindsided by the news. The day after the announcement that Strahan would be leaving the show, Ripa took a “sick day” and left for vacation with husband Mark Consuelos.

Upon Ripa’s return on April 26, she stated, “I first want to honestly, sincerely thank you for welcoming me back to the show. The show of support through this bizarre time has been really overwhelming. I really – I needed a couple of days to gather my thoughts after 26 years with this company. I earned the right, and let’s be honest: I know half of you called in sick to be here, so we get each other.”

As of now, no full time replacement has been announced for Live as Ripa will keep testing other potential co-hosts.

The episode with the Strahan interview on Chelsea airs Friday on Netflix.