When Is Mark Consuelos' First Day on 'Live With Kelly and Mark'?
Mark Consuelos is getting ready to step into a new role. Later this month, the Riverdale actor is set to join wife Kelly Ripa on Live!, with Consuelos joining the long-running talk show as co-host following Ryan Seacrest's Friday departure. But when exactly is Conseulos' first day?
Consuelos will make his Live! debut on Monday, April 17, the official social media accounts for the talk show confirmed Friday alongside a clip of the husband and wife promoting the show. Formerly known as Live With Kelly and Ryan, the talk show will be rebranded as Live With Kelly and Mark come Consuelos' Monday debut on the show. The clip posted Friday captured the couple enjoying a sweet morning moment, with Ripa remarking that she slept "terrible" and Consuelos remarking, "This will help you wake up," as he hands her a cup of coffee. As the actor asks what their plans are for the day, Ripa excitedly replies, "Our show," before the video sweetly announces, "From co-stars in life, to co-hosts on Live!"
Consuelos was confirmed to be joining Live! back in February when Seacrest confirmed he would be departing the syndicated ABC talk show, which he first joined in 2017 following Michael Strahan's departure, "to shoot the 21st season of American Idol in LA, continue my radio show on KIIS-FM and Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin Eve, and focus my summer on opening three more Ryan Seacrest Foundation Studios in pediatric hospitals across the country." At the time, the network announced that Consuelos would join Live as Seacrest's replacement, with the show rebranding to Live with Kelly and Mark.
"Congrats on your next chapter [Ryan Seacrest]. love you like a brother. I know I have some big shoes to fill ... well actually they're only a size 9, but you know what I mean," Consuelos wrote on Instagram shortly after the news broke. "[Kelly Ripa] my ride or die. This is going to be amazing! I can't believe after all these years of listening to you talk for free, I found a way to get paid for it. Is this a great country or what?"
Seacrest, meanwhile, shared in a statement, "It's been a memorable ride and now I'm excited to pass the baton to Kelly's 'real' husband, Mark." Speaking on his final show Friday, which was pre-recorded and included flashbacks from his time on Live, Seacrest told viewers, "I have spent my entire career talking – talking on the radio, talking on television. Words are my bread and butter. It's my wheelhouse. But today it is hard to put into words how deeply I have appreciated being here and being with you, being invited into your homes every day, trying to deliver a smile, or a laugh or two. I'm honored to be part of this family. I am blessed with so many memories... I will cherish, I will relish [and] I will relive those memories forever."