Daytime TV Stars of the 2000s: Where Are They Now?

We bet you know where Kelly Clarkson is these days: She’s everywhere — on The Voice, in UglyDolls, at the Indianapolis 500, and on her way to becoming a daytime-talk host via The Kelly Clarkson Show, set to premiere this fall. But will we always know where Clarkson is? Just ask Matt Lauer if anything — or any gig — lasts forever.

At the dawn of the 21st century, Lauer was the co-anchor of NBC’s Today. He interviewed presidents and was paid millions. Then in 2017, a co-worker accused Lauer of sexual misconduct, and he was fired. Just like that, he went from being a daytime star to being a former daytime star.

Though the circumstances behind Lauer’s disappearance from the daytime-TV scene are unique to him, Lauer is hardly the only daytime-TV star of the 2000s and 2010s to fall, fade or move on. Two of Lauer’s former Today co-anchors, Katie Couric and Ann Curry, both belong to that group. So does a swath of former View regulars, including Rosie O’Donnell, Elisabeth Hasselbeck, Lisa Ling, Sherri Shepherd — and even the show’s guiding force, Barbara Walters. Some, like Ling, left their daytime gigs to pursue passion projects. Others, like O’Donnell, left to spend more time with their families (and also because there was too much shouting).

Daytime soap stars of the last two decades, meanwhile, often haven’t had choices as to whether to leave their shows: Their shows left them. Since 2003, the bulk of broadcast-network TV’s remaining daytime dramas, including All My Children, have been canceled. The actors on these shows, including the genre’s signature actress, Susan Lucci, also suddenly became former daytime TV stars. A lucky few, including Shemar Moore, who exited The Young and the Restless for primetime (Criminal Minds, S.W.A.T.), left on their own terms — and still have a show to return to when the occasion strikes. (See: Moore’s four-episode, 2019 Y&R stint, a tribute to his late co-star, Kristoff St. John, who died in February.)

Here’s a look at 25 former daytime TV stars of the ’00s and the ’10s — the shows they used to call home, and the lives they’ve gone on to live. Despite Kelly Clarkson everywhere-ness, you will not find her here. (Yet?)

Victoria Rowell: Then

On The Young and the Restless, the actress starred as Drucilla opposite Kristoff St. John’s Neil from 1990-2000, and again from 2002-2007.  

Victoria Rowell: Now

Rowell returned to the The Young and the Restless set in 2019 to pay tribute to St. John following the actor’s death.

Ann Curry: Then

Curry was a fixture on Today — until she became Matt Lauer’s equal in 2011. Lauer reportedly undermined Curry, and she departed the show only one year after being named co-anchor. 

Ann Curry: Now

Curry has gone from Today turmoil to the solo spotlight. Here, she promotes her new TBS and TNT documentary series, Chasing the Cure. 

Matt Lauer: Then

From 1997-2017 on Today, Lauer held court with the likes of music great David Bowie.

Matt Lauer: Now

Lauer, seen here on a beach in 2018, has not returned to TV since being fired by NBC News. 

Ricki Lake: Then

The star of the original Hairspray movie hosted a 1992-2004 daytime talk show aimed at younger viewers.

Ricki Lake: Now

Lake, who hosted a second daytime talk show from 2012-2014, was unmasked as the Raven on Season 1 of The Masked Singer. 

Mark Consuelos: Then

From 1995-2001, Consuelos starred as underdog Matt Santos — and met future wife Kelly Ripa — on All My Children. 

Mark Consuelos: Now

Consuelos plays top dog Hiram Lodge on Riverdale. 

Leah Remini: Then

From 2010-2011, the former King of Queens (and future Kevin Can Wait) star bantered as one of the original co-hosts on The Talk. 

Leah Remini: Now

A Church of Scientology member turned critic, Remini hosts the A&E documentary series, Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath. 

Tamar Braxton: Then

The Braxton Family Values reality star became a daytime-talk star in 2013 as one of the original co-hosts of The Real. 

Tamar Braxton: Now

After exiting The Real in 2016, Braxton has kept right on keeping it real on Braxton Family Values.  

Rosie O’Donnell: Then

O’Donnell, who first found daytime fame on her 1996-2002 talk show, returned to the a.m. shift in 2006 for TV legend Barbara Walters and The View. Her stint was short. And so was her second one, in 2014-2015.

Rosie O’Donnell: Now

Daytime TV’s in O’Donnell’s rear-view mirror. Seen here with Andy Cohen in 2019, the once-again actress is set to appear in the HBO miniseries, I Know This Much Is True. 

Tony Okungbowa: Then

The Ellen DeGeneres Show‘s longest-serving DJ cranked out the tunes from 2003-2006, and again from 2008-2013.

Tony Okungbowa: Now

Okungbowa still deejays. He also acts. His credits include Ray Donovan and NCIS: Los Angeles. 

Shemar Moore: Then

During a career-making, 1994-2005 run on The Young and the Restless, Moore played Malcolm Winters, Neil Winters’ half-brother.  

Shemar Moore: Now

As a primetime actor, Moore is still enjoying popular runs: first, on Criminal Minds, and, of late, on S.W.A.T.

Eva LaRue: Then

On All My Children, LaRue’s character, Dr. Maria Santos, wed crusading journalist Edmund Grey (played by LaRue’s then-husband John Callahan). 

Eva LaRue: Now

On Fuller House, the CSI: Miami alum plays the wife of Danny Tanner (Bob Saget). The characters are later said to be divorced; LaRue’s now bound for The Young and the Restless.  

Elisabeth Hasselbeck: Then

On The View, the Survivor star didn’t click with Rosie O’Donnell, but she could laugh it up with Meredith Vieira. 

Elisabeth Hasselbeck: Now

Hasselbeck left The View for Fox & Friends in 2013. In 2015, she stepped away from morning TV, but not entirely from the spotlight: Here, she presents with Christian-music star Mike Donehey at the 2018 K-LOVE Fan Awards. 

Katie Couric: Then

The Today co-anchor greets the Backstreet Boys in 2001. 

Katie Couric: Now

Couric, who departed Today in 2006, and hopscotched from CBS to ABC to Yahoo!, among other gigs, will next host a weekly show for People magazine’s digital outlets. 

Erika Slezak: Then

For more than 40 years, Erika Slezak starred as heroine Viki Lord on One Life to Live. 

Erika Slezak: Now

Since the demise of One Life to Live in 2013, Slezak has popped up on Blue Bloods (pictured) and The Intern. 

Lisa Ling: Then

Ling is seen in 2001, a year before her departure as co-host on The View. 

Lisa Ling: Now

Ling, who left The View to return to reporting, has hosted documentary series for the National Geographic Channel, Oprah Winfrey’s OWN and CNN. 

Susan Lucci: Then

Daytime drama’s signature star, Lucci starred as diva Erica Kane for the duration of All My Children‘s 1970-2011 ABC run. 

Susan Lucci: Now

Even after a heart scare, Lucci still looks red-carpet-ready at the 2019 premiere of FX’s Fosse/Verdon. 

Montel Williams: Then

Williams hosted his self-titled talk show from 1991-2008.

Montel Williams: Now

Williams, who’s been coping with multiple sclerosis since the late 1990s, has logged several appearances as a guest on The Dr. Oz Show. 

Aisha Tyler: Then

The actress-comic (pictured, far right) co-hosted The Talk from 2011-2017.  

Aisha Tyler: Now

Tyler enjoys a laugh at a New York Comic Con panel for Archer in 2018. Tyler’s done voice-over work for Archer since the animated cult favorite’s 2009 debut. 

Regis Philbin: Then

Philbin, the original host of Live!, welcomed Kelly Ripa to the chat show in 2001. 

Regis Philbin: Now

In 2019, Philbin returned to daytime to pay tribute to another of his Live! co-hosts, Kathie Lee Gifford, upon Gifford’s departure from Today.

Star Jones: Then

As one of the original co-hosts of The View, the attorney (pictured, second from left) went through a lot of drama with Meredith Vieira, Barbara Walters and Joy Behar. 

Star Jones: Now

Jones, who exited The View in 2006, executive produced the 2017 VH1 drama series, Daytime Divas, based on her novel, Satan’s Sisters. 

Sherri Shepherd: Then

The actress-comic is seen with The View‘s Joy Behar during Shepherd’s first year on the talk show. 

Sherri Shepherd: Now

Since leaving The View in 2014, the 30 Rock alum has piled up the sitcom work. She’ll next be seen in the Netflix comedy series, Mr. Iglesias. 

Cameron Mathison: Then

In 2004, the All My Children hunk announced the Daytime Emmy nominations with actress Heather Tom.

Cameron Mathison: Now

Mathison, who remained with All My Children until the end of its ABC run, is seen cooking up daytime chat with actress Catherine Bach on Hallmark Channel’s Home & Family. 

Marissa Jaret Winokur: Then

The Tony-winning Broadway star (Hairspray) was part of the original team on The Talk. 

Marissa Jaret Winokur: Now

Winokur, who departed The Talk in 2011, reunited with her talk-show colleague, Julie Chen, when she competed on — and won — the 2018 season of Celebrity Big Brother. 

Holly Robinson Peete: Then

Like Sharon Osbourne and Julie Chen, Peete was an original co-host on The Talk. 

Holly Robinson Peete: Now

While her time on The Talk ended after just one season, Peete is in the driver’s seat on the Hallmark Channel reality series, Meet the Peetes. 

Barbara Walters: Then

The TV trailblazer, who concocted The View with producer Bill Geddie, is seen with the 2006 version of her talk crew. 

Barbara Walters: Now

Walters has returned to The View a handful of times since retiring in 2014; her last appearance to date came in 2016, the same year she’s seen here in New York City.