Jerry O'Connell Landed Major Game Show Gig Ahead of 'The Talk' Casting

Jerry O'Connell is reportedly prepping to take his seat at The Talk's discussion table as Sharon Osbourne's replacement, but the Stand By Me actor adds more than just that title to his roster of credits. Less than a month before reports surfaced that O'Connell, who most recently starred in Star Trek: Lower Decks, is nearing a deal to become Osbourne's replacement, the actor landed another major gig.

On Monday night, O'Connell stepped into his new role as host of the game show Pictionary. O'Connell was first confirmed to be taking on the new role in late June, with the show currently broadcasting in half-hour installments on weekdays as a trial run method. Based on the popular Mattel game of the same name, Pictionary sees two teams of three – two players and a celebrity captain – taking part in a cut-throat game of Pictionary, with one team member drawing images to describe the word or phrase printed on a card chosen at random. Their teammate must then guess what the image is intended to represent.

"Ever since my failed drawing of a koala bear lost my mom and me our household Pictionary crown, I've wanted to prove myself on the Pictionary stage," O'Connell said when he was confirmed to be hosting the show, TV Insider reported at the time. "I'm so happy to be working with this team from Fox and CBS. Sharpen your pencils; it's going to be a fun summer."

Frank Cicha, EVP Programming at Fox Television Stations, said, "we're sure a lot of families got much better at Pictionary over the last 15 months, so we think the timing is perfect for a fun, innovative TV version, and to have Jerry O'Connell as host is a real bonus." The show officially kicked off Monday night and received some rave reviews from viewers, though it is unclear if it will survive past the initial four-week trial run.

The game show news came just three weeks before sources told The Wrap the actor is in talks to replace Osbourne on The Talk. Fans of the talk show will recall that Osbourne left the show following a heated on-air spat with fellow co-host Sheryl Underwood over Osbourne's support of Piers Morgan amid his departure from Good Morning Britain after he made controversial comments regarding Meghan Markle. In the months since her exit, The Talk has been searching for Osbourne's replacement, and it is said they have landed on O'Connell, who is reportedly nearing a deal to fill the vacant spot on the talk show, though his addition has not been confirmed.